Class 
Book 




JSs£ 



J 



3^r k 



PROGRESSIVE MEN AND WOMEN 



OF 



KOSCIUSKO COUNTY, INDIANA 



TO WHICH IS APPENDED 



A Comprehensive Compendium of National Biography — Memoirs of Eminent Men 

ami Women of the United States, whose Deeds of Valor or Works 

of Merit have Made their Names Imperishable. 



ILLUSTRATED 



Embellished with Portraits of Many Nationai Characters and Well Known 
Residents of Kosciusko County, Indiana. 



LOGANSPORT. INDIANA. 

B. K. BOWEN, PUBLISHER 

1902 



CONTENTS 



GENERAL INDEX. 



Table of Contents 
Introductory - 



3 
1 1 



Compendium of National Biography 13 
Compendium of Local Biography - 223 



INDEX TO PART 1. 



Compendium of National Biography. 



Biographical Sketches of National Celebrities. 



PAGE 

Abbott, Lyman 1 44 

Adams, Charles Kendall 143 

Adams, John 25 

Adams, John Quincy 61 

Agassiz, Louis J. R 137 

Alger, Russell A 173 

Allison, William B 131 

Allston, Washington 100 

Altgeld, John Peter 140 

Andrews, Elisha B 184 

Anthony, Susan B 62 

Armour, Philip D 62 

Arnold, Benedict 84 

Arthur, Chester Allen 168 

Astor, John Jacob 139 

Audubon, John James 166 

Bailey, James Montgomery... 177 

Bancroft, George 74 

Barnard, Frederick A. P 179 

Barnum, Phineas T 4; 

Barrett, Lawrence 156 

Barton, Clara 209 

Bayard, Thomas Francis 200 

Beard, William H 196 

Beauregard, Pierre G. T 203 

Beecher, Henry Ward 26 

Bell, Alexander Graham 96 

Bennett, James Gordon 206 

Benton, Thomas Hart 53 

Bergh, Henry 160 

Bierstadt, Albert 197 

Billings. Josh 166 

Blaine, James Gillespie 22 

Bland, Richard Parks 106 



PAGE 

Boone, Daniel 36 

Booth, Edwin 51 

Booth, Junius Brutus 177 

Brice, Calvin S 181 

Brooks. Phillips 130 

Brown, John 51 

Brown. Charles Farrar 91 

Brush, Charles Francis 153 

Bryan, William Jennings 158 

Bryant, William Cullen 44 

Buchanan, Franklin 105 

Buchanan, James 128 

Buckner, Simon Boliver 188 

Burdette. Robert J 103 

Burr, Aaron in 

Butler, Benjamin Franklin... 24 

Calhoun, John Caldwell 23 

Cameron, James Donald 141 

Cameron, Simon 14 1 

Cammack, Addison 197 

Campbell, Alexander 180 

Carlisle, John G 133 

Carnegie, Andrew 73 

Carpenter, Matthew Hale 178 

Carson, Christopher (Kit)... 86 

Cass, Lewis no 

Chase, Salmon Portland 65 

Childs, George W 83 

Choate, Rufus 207 

Charlin. Horace Brigham 107 

Clay. Henry 21 

Clemens, Samuel Langhorne. 86 

Cleveland. Grover 174 

Clews, Henry 153 



PAGE 

Clinton, DeWitt no 

Colfax, Schuyler 139 

Conkling, Alfred 32 

Conkling, Roscoe 32 

Cooley, Thomas Mclntyre. . . . 140 

Cooper, James Fenimore 58 

Cooper, Peter 37 

Copeley, John Singleton 191 

Corbin. Austin 205 

Corcoran, W. W 196 

Cornell, Ezra 161 

Cramp, William 189 

Crockett, David 76 

Cullom, Shelby Moore 116 

Curtis, George William 144 

Cushman. Charlotte 107 

Custer, George A 95 

Dana, Charles A 88 

"Danbury News Man" 177 

Davenport, Fanny 106 

Davis, Jefferson 24 

Debs, Eugene V 132 

Decatur. Stephen 101 

Deering, William 198 

Depew, Chauncey Mitchell . . . 209 

Dickinson, Anna 103 

Dickinson, Don M 139 

Dingley, Nelson, Jr 215 

Donnelly, Ignatius 161 

Douglas, Stephen Arnold.... 53 

Douglass. Frederick 43 

Dow, Neal 108 

I Draper, John William 184 



TABLE OF CONTEA TS—PART I. 



'-'4 

Dupont, I i 

Edmi 



'-7 
ts, William Maxwell. . 

I"ar 

irshall.... 

Filln n.i 

• drew Hull 17'' 

1 4.? 

[i Iville Weston. ... 

Full 

man j . . . . 71 

•ill. Albert I 12 

Id, James A. .. . 
\\ ork 
William Lloyd. . . . 

. ... i ii. 
r: 

i.(7 

■ii. John B 

- 

Vdolphus W. 
••>. Horai i 
Nathaniel . 

i.iin. Walter Ouiiitm . 

irles Francis to? 

Hamilton, Alexander 31 

Hamlin. Hannibal. 214 

I [ampti in. Wade 19a 

Winfield Scotl . . 146 
na, Marcus Aloi 
Harris, Ishan 214 

Harrison, William Henrj . . 

Han iamin 

I [arvard, John. 

Havemeyer, John Craig 183 

13S 
Hayes, Rutherford Birchard 
Hendricks, Tin. ma- Vndrew 

Henry, Patrick 83 

Hill. I >.i\ id Bennett 90 



Holmes, Oliver Wendell 

Howi 104 

Houston, Sam 

Hugl ... 157 

Hull, 

Hun: 

Ingal 114 

Irving, \\ . 

71 

.. hn 

Jeff< ■ i>li 47 

Thomas. 

'45 
John 

J. ill! 

171 

' ' 5 

Kean 
Kenl 

John Jaj . . 134 

Lam 

131 

n, jolm A. .. 

. 

ay, John William 14X 

Madison, Janv i 42 

Mather, Cotton.. . 

Matl 163 

in. Hiram S 
McClellai ton . . 47 

.ru- Hall 
McDonough, Com. Thomas. 167 

McKinll ) . William 

Me 

Medill, Joseph . . 
\ 
Miller. Cincinnatus Heine. 

Miller. Ji 

Mills, K . ji 1 

Mom 54 

\1 ly, Dwighl 1 

Moran, Thomas .56 



..in. John 

John T 

- mud F. !'■ U4 

'4-' 

Perrj . 215 

hn Lathr. ; 130 

•Nye. Bill"... 

- 



1 Diaries 

< >lne\. 



133 



'47 

Parkhurst 

Irs." 

\ 

Phil! 

122 

JIJ 

Henrj B 

j r Allen. . . 

Pres 
Pullman, 

171 

Buchan; 

Wllltel.i.'. 

h, John 
Rocl 

' 13 

Km' 

21 1 
l-.ini Mc Mister 

m Henr> . 44 

in 

Shaw. I lmr\ W 1 66 

Slier 

Sherman. Char] 

i.iii. J.-hn .... 
Sherman, William I 
Shillaber, Benjamin Penhallow 
Smith. Edmund Kirbj 114 

in Philip 60 

Spreckles, Clan- 



TABLE OF CONTENTS— PART J. 



PAGE 

ford. Leland 101 

Stanton, Edwin McMasters. . 179 

Stanton, Elizabeth Cady 126 

Stephens, Alexander Hamilton 32 

ihenson, Adlai Ewing. ... 141 

Stewart. Alexander T 58 

Stewart. William Morris.... 213 
Stowe, Harriet Elizabeth 

li echer 66 

Stuart, James E. B 122 

Simmer, Charles 34 

Talmage. Thomas DeWitt. .. 60 

Taney, Roger Brooks uo 

Taylor, Zachary 10S 

Teller, Henry M 127 

Tesla, Xikoia 193 

Thomas, George H 73 

Thomas, Theodore 172 

Thurman, Allen G 90 



PAGE 

Thurston. John M 166 

Tilden, Samuel J 48 

Tillman, Benjamin Ryan.... 119 

Toombs, Robert 205 

"Twain. Mark" 86 

Tyler. John 93 

Van Buren, Martin 78 

Vamlerbilt, Cornelius 35 

Vail, Alfred 154 

Vest, George Graham 214 

Vilas, William Freeman 140 

Voorhees, Daniel Wolsey. ... 95 

Waite. Morrison Remich 125 

Wallace, Lewis 199 

Wallack, Lester 121 

Wallack, John Lester 121 

Wanamaker, John 89 

Ward. "Artemus" 91 



PAGE 

Washburne, Elihu Benjamin.. 189 

Washington, George 17 

Watson, Thomas E 178 

Watterson, Henry 76 

Weaver, James B 123 

Webster, Daniel 19 

Webster. Noah 49 

Weed, Thurlow 91 

West, Benjamin 115 

Whipple, Henry Benjamin... 161 

White. Stephen V 162 

Whitefield, George 150 

Whitman. Walt 197 

Whitney. Eli 120 

Whitney, William Collins.... 92 

Whittier. John Greenleaf 67 

Willard, Frances E 133 

Wilson, William L 180 

Winchell, Alexander 175 

Windom, William 138 



PORTRAITS OF NATIONAL CELEBRITIES. 



PAGE 

Alger, Russell A 16 

Allison, William B 99 

Anthony. Susan B 63 

Armour. Philip D 151 

Arthur. Chester A 81 

Barnum. Phineas T 117 

Beecher, Henry Ward 27 

Blaine. James G 151 

Booth, Edwin 63 

Bryan, Wm. J 63 

Bryant, William Cullen 185 

Buchanan, James 81 

Buckner, Simon B 16 

Butler. Benjamin F 151 

Carlisle. John G [51 

Chase, Salmon P 16 

Chi Ids. George W 99 

Clay, Henry 81 

Cleveland, Grover 45 

Cooper. Peter 99 

Dana. Charles A 151 

Depew, Chauncey M 117 

I >ouglass, Fred 63 

Emerson., Ralph Waldo 27 

IWarts. William M 99 

Farragtit. Com. D. G 185 

Field, Cyrus W 63 



PAGE 

I ■:, Id, Marshall 117 

Franklin, Benjamin 63 

Fremont, Gen. John C 16 

Gage, Lyman J 15 1 

Garfield, James A 45 

Garrison, William Lloyd.'... 63 

George, Henry 117 

Gould. Jay 99 

Grant. Gen. U. S 185 

Greeley. Horace 81 

Hampton. Wade 16 

Hancock. Gen. Winfield S.... 185 

llanna. Mark A 117 

Hani -on. Benjamin 81 

Hayes. R. B 45 

Hendricks, Thomas A 81 

Holmes. Oliver W 151 

Hooker. Gen. Joseph 16 

[ngersoll, Robert G 117 

Irving, Washington 27 

Jackson, Andrew 45 

Jefferson, Thomas 45 

Johnston, Gen. J. E 16 

Lee, Gen. Robert E 185 

Lincoln. Abraham 81 

Logan. Gen. John A 16 

Longfellow, Henry W 185 



PAGE 

Longstreet, Gen. James 16 

Lowell. James Russell 27 

McKinley, William 45 

Morse, S. F. B 185 

Phillips, Wendell 27 

Porter, Com. D. D 185 

Pullman, George M 117 

Quav, M. S 99 

Reed. Thomas B 151 

Sage, Russell 117 

Scott. Gen. Winfield 185 

Seward, William H 45 

Sherman. John 99 

Sherman. Gen. W. T 151 

Stanton. Elizabeth Cady 27 

Stowe. Harriet Beecher 27 

Sumner, Charles 45 

Talmage. T. DeWitt 63 

Teller. Henry M 99 

Thurman, Allen G 81 

Tilden. Samuel J 117 

Van Buren. Martin 81 

Vanderbilt. Commodore 99 

Webster, Daniel 27 

Whittier. John G 27 

Washington, George 45 

Watterson. Henry 63 



INDEX. 



Andreas, Josiah 540 

Anglin, James 523 

Anglin, James H 335 

Anglin, John W 523 

Anglin, Mrs. Maggie 506 

Anglin, Samuel D 335 

Armey, Jacob 593 

Armey, Joseph S 593 

Arthur, John L 351 

Arthur, Shelby 351 



B. 



Baker, William 

Baker, William E 

Baker, William E 

Ball, Henderson W 

Ball, Thomas 

Ball, William D 

Balliet, David 

Balsley, John 

Balsley, William 

Banning, Jefferson 

Banning, William 

Barber, Sylvester 

Bartholomew, Henry S. K. 

Bartholomew, Moses 

Baugher, Charles 

Beagle, Calvin 

Beagle, John C 

Beagle, Stephen 

Bear, Benjamin F 

Beck, Hudson 

Beck, Metcalfe 

Bentley, Charles B 

Berger, Henry 

Berger, Henry J 

Best, John 

Black, Edward G 



425 
375 
375 
280 
419 
280 
537 
499 
499 
485 
484 
272 
362 
362 
456 
597 
596 
597 
407 
327 
258 
314 
. 618 
617 
562 
252 



PAGE 

600 
599 
395 
395 
397 



Black, James 

Black, Joseph 

Blue, Benjamin 

Blue, James H 

Blue, Peter B 

Blue, William J 441 

Bowman, Isaac 372 

Bowman, William 372 

Bowman, William H 371 

Brindley, Milton H 550 

Bruner, George 409 

Bruner, John 410 

Butterbaugh, George W 448 

Butterbaugh, John 370 

Butterbaugh, Theron D 447 

Butterbaugh, William H 370 

Bybee, Allen 389 

Bybee, John 389 

Byrer, Albert 635 

Byrer, Reuben 635 



Carpenter, Daniel H 461 

Carpenter, Harvey 461 

Carr, Samuel J 431 

Chipman, Isaac 223 

Chipman, Silas W 223 

Chivington, Philip 364 

Clay, John 611 

Clay, William H 610 

Colbert, Thomas J 430 

Cook, Peter S 326 

Crow, Nathaniel 579 

D. 

Dausman, David 530 

Davisson, William C 586 

Day, Benjamin F 263 

Deaton, George W 274 



PAGE 

Deaton, Jacob O 274 

Dunlap, John W 444 

Dunlap, William 444 

Dye, Charles T 595 

Dye, Marshall A 595 

E. 

Eaton, Levi H 414 

Eddinger, Elmer M 439 

Eddinger, Frederick 439 

Edmonds, Andrew 577 

F. 

Farber, Curtis C 590 

Fermier, P. G., M. D 631 

Fisher, James 293 

Fisher, John 294 

Fisher, Stephen 293 

Foreman, Robert 408 

Frantz, Christian E 353 

Frantz, Christian 353 

Frantz, Jacob 353 

Frantz, Michael 353 

Frantz, Michael 353 

Frazer, James S 228 

Frazer, Hon. William D 228 

Funk, Henry B 332 

G. 

Garwood, Amasa 450 

Garwood, William 451 

Gawthrop, Amos 552 

Gawthrop, John 552 

Gerard, Orlando F 469 

Gerard, William E 549 

Gripe, Jacob 340 

Gripe, Nicholas G 336 

Gripe, Samuel 340 

Groves, Omar F 557 



IXDEX. 



PAGE 

Guy, Andrew 574 

Guy, Richard 574 

H. 

Haines, Jesse 446 

Haines, Robert 297 

Haines, Samuel 446 

Hall, Isaac 588 

Hall, Sylvester 588 

Hamman, David 476 

Haney, Abraham 614 

Haney, John F 614 

Hardman, Peter J 290 

Harlan, Charles E 486 

Harlan, William 486 

Hays, Elijah 234 

Heagy, John S 534 

Heckman, William 640 

Heeter, Solomon 333 

Heeter, David 333 

Heisler, John 249 

Heisler, William 249 

Hepler, [acob '.. 618 

Hepler, John D 564 

Hepler, S 631 

Hepler, Samuel C 636 

Hepler, Simon 563 

Higgins, Smith 4nl 

I K.ller, Samuel 860 

Hohnian, Kmanuel H 405 

Hohman, George 405 

Hollar, i leorge W 630 

Hollar, James E 619 

Hollar, Joseph 622 

Holloway, Thomas C 404 

I [ossler, Quincy A 253 

Huffman, George I. 277 

Huffman, William 11 278 

I. 

[senbargi r, i >lm 391 

[senbarger, William 391 

J. 

Jamison, Samuel 

John, Calvin N :i77 

i, David :177 

John. David M 378 

Johnson, Benjamin 418 

Johnson, Isaac 178 

-. Mrs. Allie 100 

Jontz, Robert M 349 



K. 

King, Hiram O 

Kinsey, Benjamin D 

Kinsey, Francis A 

Kinsey, Henry E 

Kirkpatrick, William 

Kirkpatrick, William W. 

Kline, Henry 

Kline, John 

Kline, Nat. W 

Koontz, Jacob 

Koontz, Jacob S 

Krull, Frederick A 



PAGE 



536 

568 
568 
:,rr, 
328 
828 
464 
464 
471 
343 
348 
558 



L. 

Latimer, Marion M 303 

Leckrone, Daniel }'_."_' 

Leckrone, Samuel 422 

Leighty, Samuel 338 

Lentz, Cyrus 584 

Lentz, Moses F 583 

Lessig, David H 319 

Lightfoot, James Wm 321 

Lloyd, Amor 4n:: 

Lloyd, John M 402 

Lones, Jerome II 260 

Long, Charles R ■">:!■"> 

Lutes, Mathias W 442 

M. 

McConnell, George .'.ill 

McKinley, James 520 

McKinley, William W 519 

McN'amara, Francis 538 

McN'amara, John G 589 

M< Sherry, Frederick 816 

ee, Vlbert 

Magee, John W 

Makemson, John 526 

Makemson, Marshall 526 

Malcolm, Charles B 556 

Malcolm, Landon C 555 

Marquart, George 623 

Marquart, John 623 

Metheny, Andrew 437 

Metheny, I- . M 4:i7 

Metheny, William 137 

Michaels, George .i'.'l 

Michaels, John 394 

Miller, Aaron 546 

Miller, Charles M 504 

Miller, David 386 

Miller, David K 

Miller, Giles 296 



PAGE 

Miller, John M 264 

Miller, Lewis 296 

Miller, Samuel ;j86 

Miller, William 504 

Mock, George 459 

Mock, John 459 

Mock, John A 459 

Mollenhour, Amos T ::;i2 

Mollenhour, Lyman L 440 

Mollenhour, William 

Moon, Edward 308 

Moon, Hon. George 246 

Moon, Jonathan 247 

Moore, Sidney T 385 

Moore, William 570 

Morehead, Frank ; . . 4f,7 

Morehead, Joseph 468 

Musselman, Cyrus 291 

Musselman, John 291 

N. 

Xeal, William F 420 

N. If, Henry E 452 

Nighswander, Robert 346 

North, Samson J fill' 

O. 

Ogden, George R 584 

Oldfather, Henry L 424 

< >tt . Francis M 572 

P. 

Plummer, James 192 

l'lummer, John 492 

Pound, John F 606 

Pound, Philip 607 

Powell, Isaac M 495 

Lowell, John 196 

Priser, John 318 

Puntenney, Noah 604 

Q- 

Quackenbush, J. A 

R. 

Reed, John 684 

Rhodes, John .Ion 

Rhodes, David 309 

Rickel. George W 354 

Ruler, Daniel 543 

Rider, Samuel 542 

Ring. Henry D 300 

Ring, Joshua 257 

Robinson, Jonathan P 282 



INDEX. 



PAGE 

Robinson, Samuel S 306 

Robinson, Silas M 265 

Robinson, William 306 

Rockhill, Mrs. Rachael 434 

Rohrer, John 616 

Rohrer, Thomas J 616 

Rosbrugh, A. W 602 

Rose, George D 324 

Royse, Hon. Lemuel W 237 

Rupe, Andrew P 250 

Rupe, Jacob 250 

S. 

Sarber, Abraham 240 

Sarber, Adam 240 

Sarber, Andrew E 554 

Sarber, Edson B 230 

Sarber, Mrs. Susan 438 

Sarber, Thomas B 240 

Sechrist, David 368 

Sechrist, Solomon 368 

Sheneman, Isaac 615 

Shipley, Francis M 382 

Shoup, John H 417 

Smalley, Joseph 322 

Smith, Andrew J 318 

Smith, Arthur 283 

Smith, George W 323 

Smith, Given K 433 

Smith, Henry T 517 

Smith, Tames E 516 

Smith, James S..M.D 301 

Smith, Rev. Joel R. 301 

Smith, John C .117 

Smith, Mark 231 

Stettler, John 575 



PAGE 

Stinson, James H 541 

Stoler, David 529 

Stoler, John 529 

Stoler, Martin 529 

Stoneburner, Andrew 286 

Stoneburner, Elias A 286 

Stoneburner, James 287 

Stout, Christian 232 

Stout, William 232 

Swanson, Hans 501 

Swick, Henry 413 

Swick, Prof. J. W 412 

Swick, William 412 

Swihart, Gabriel 357 

Swihart, Jacob 357 

T. 

Teegarden, George 4:14 

Teeple, Davis 581 

Thayer, Rev. George H 225 

Thomas, B. A 366 

Thomas, Samuel 366 

Thompson, William C 449 

Thorn, John 532 

Thorn, William H 532 

Tom, Daniel 488 

Tom, John 488 

Troup, Jacob J 490 

Troup, John B 491 

Tucker, Albert 454 

Tucker, Charles M 416 

Tucker, Horace 242 

Tucker, John 243 

Tucker, Norman 350 

Tucker, Ora 384 

Turnbull, Eli 356 



PAGE 

U. 

Ulrey, Gabriel 426 

Ulrey, Hiram 545 

Ulrey, Jacob 358 

Ulrich, Joseph 285 

Ulrich, Stephen 285 

V. 

Vance, George 458 

W. 

Wainwright, J. M 428 

Warde and Tucker Families. . 242 

Warner, Joseph 543 

Warren, John 279 

Warren, Samuel 279 

Weaver, George 330 

Weaver, Jacob S 329 

Webber, Irvin B 266 

Webber, John 267 

Welch, David S 513 

Welch, Joseph 514 

Wells, Ephraim 270 

Welty, Ulrich 560 

Whitehead, John W 627 

Whitehead, Lewis 627 

Wiley, Rev. Thomas 298 

Williams, Gen. Reuben 221 

Willis, Henry 483 

Wood, Capt. Andrew G 304 

Woods, John 565 

Woods, Milton 565 

Worley, G. W 399 

Worley, William W 474 

Wright, John 511 

Wright, Oliver 608 

Wright, Thomas J 511 




Gl£= 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 

. . OF . . 

Celebrated Americans 



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•2 ill it/ ill \*/ Ui li \l/ S- eY~ 



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fEORGE WASHINGTON, 
I the first president of the Unit- 
| ed States, called the "Father 
Itt'pvtifififfifvf of his Country," was one of 
sfe^fS 3 the most celebrated characters 
x?f^r ' n history. He was born Feb- 
* ruary 22, 1732, in Washing- 

ton Parish, Westmoreland county, Virginia. 
His father, Augustine Washington, first 
married Jane Butler, who bore him four 
children, and March 6, 1730, he married 
Mary Ball. Of six children by his second 
marriage, George was the eldest. 

Little is known of the early years of 
Washington, beyond the fact that the house 
in which he was born was burned during his 
early childhood, and that his father there- 
upon moved to another farm, inherited from 
his paternal ancestors, situated in Stafford 
county, on the north bank of the Rappahan- 
nock, and died there in 1743. From earliest 
childhood George developed a noble charac- 
ter. His education was somewhat defective, 
being confined to the elementary branches 
taught him by his mother and at a neighbor- 
ing school. On leaving school he resided 
some time at Mount Vernon with his half 



brother, Lawrence, who acted as his guar- 
dian. George's inclinations were for a sea- 
faring career, and a midshipman's warrant 
was procured for him; but through the oppo- 
sition of his mother the project was aban- 
doned, and at the age of sixteen he was 
appointed surveyor to the immense estates 
of the eccentric Lord Fairfax. Three years 
were passed by Washington in a rough fron- 
tier life, gaining experience which afterwards 
proved very essential to him. In 1751, 
when the Virginia militia were put under 
training with a view to active service against 
France, Washington, though only nineteen 
years of age, was appointed adjutant, with 
the rank of major. In 1752 Lawrence 
Washington died, leaving his large property 
to an infant daughter. In his will George 
was named one of the executors and as an 
eventual heir to Mount Vernon, and by the 
death of the infant niece, soon succeeded to 
that estate. In 1753 George was commis- 
sioned adjutant-general of the Virginia 
militia, and performed important work at 
the outbreak of the French and Indian war, 
was rapidly promoted, and at the close of 
that warwe find him commander-in-chief of 



Oop] 1 i-'i.r l SOT, b] Georgi \ Ogli \ Co 



18 



COMPENDIUM <>/■ BIOGRAPHY. 



all the forces raised in Virginia. A cessation 
of Indian hostilities on the frontier having 
followed the expulsion of the French from 
the Ohio, he resigned his commission as 
commander-in-chief of the Virginia forces, 
and then proceeded to Williamsburg to take 
his seat in the Virginia Assembly, of which 
he had been elected a member. 

January 17, 1759, Washington married 
Mrs. Martha (Dandridge) Curtis, a young 
and beautiful widow of great wealth, and 
devoted himself for the ensuing fifteen years 
to the quiet pursuits of agriculture, inter- 
rupted only by the annual attendance in 
winter upon the colonial legislature at 
Williamsburg, until summoned by his coun- 
try to enter upon that other arena in which 
his fame was to become world-wide. The 
war for independence called Washington 
into service again, and he was made com- 
mander-in-chief of the colonial forces, and 
was the most gallant and conspicuous figure 
in that bloody struggle, serving until Eng- 
land acknowledged the independence of 
each of the thirteen States, and negotiated 
with them jointly, as separate sovereignties. 
December 4, 1783, the great commander 
took leave of his officers in most affection- 
ate and patriotic terms, and went to An- 
napolis, Maryland, where the congress of 
the States was in session, and to that body, 
when peace and order prevailed everywhere, 
resigned his commission and retired to 
Mount Vernon. 

It was in 1 7S9 that Washington was 
called ti» the chief magistracy of the na- 
tion. The inauguration took place April 
;< >. in the presence of an immense multi- 
tude which had assembled to witness the new 
and imposing ceremony. In the manifold de- 
tails of his civil administration Washington 
proved himself fully equal to the requirements 
of his position. In 179-, at the second presi- 



dential election, Washington was desirous 
to retire; but he yielded to the general wish 
of the country, and was again chosen presi- 
dent. At the third election, in 1796, he 
was again most urgently entreated to con- 
sent to remain in the executive chair. This 
he positively refused, and after March 4, 
1797, he again retired to Mount Vernon 
for peace, quiet, and repose. 

Of the call again made on this illustrious 
chief to quit his repose at Mount Ver- 
non and take command of all the United 
States forces, with rank of lieutenant-gen- 
eral, when war was threatened wilh France 
in 1 70S. nothing need here be stated, ex- 
cept to note the fact as an unmistakable 
testimonial of the high regard in which he 
was still held by his countrymen of all 
shades of political opinion. He patriotic- 
ally accepted this trust, but a treaty of 
peace put a stop to all action under it. He 
again retired to Mount Vernon, where he 
died December 14, 1799, in the sixty-eighth 
year of his age. His remains were depos- 
ited in a family vault on the banks of the 
Potomac, at Mount Vernon, where they 
still lie entombed. 

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN, an eminent 
American statesman and scientist, was 
born of poor parentage, January 17, 1706, 
in Boston, Massachusetts. He was appren- 
ticed to his brother James to learn the print- 
er's trade to prevent his running away and 
going to sea, and also because of the numer- 
ous family his parents had to support (there 
being seventeen children, Benjamin bi 
the fifteenth). He was a j^reat reader, and 
soon developed a taste for writing, and pre- 
pared a number of articles and had them 
published in the paper without his brother's 
knowledge, and when the authorship be- 
I came known it resulted in difficulty for the 



C OM PENDIUM OF BIO GRA I 'll I . 



;) 



young apprentice, although his articles had 
been received with favor by the public. 
James was afterwards thrown into prison for 
political reasons, and young Benjamin con- 
ducted the paper alone during the time. In 
1823, however, he determined to endure his 
bonds no longer, and ran away, going to 
Philadelphia, where he arrived with only 
three pence as his store of wealth. With 
these he purchased three rolls, and ate them 
as he walked along the streets. He soon 
found employment as a journeyman printer. 
Two years later he was sent to England by 
the governor of Pennsylvania, and was 
promised the public printing, but did not get 
it. On his return to Philadelphia he estab- 
lished the "Pennsylvania Gazette," and 
soon found himself a person of great popu- 
larity in the province, his ability as a writer, 
philosopher, and politician having reached 
the neighboring colonies. He rapidly grew 
in prominence, founded the Philadelphia Li- 
brary in 1842, and two years later the 
American Philosophical Society and the 
University of Pennsylvania. He was made 
I'ellow of the Royal Society in London in 
1775. His world-famous investigations in 
electricity and lightning began in 1746. He 
became postmaster-general of the colonies 
in 1753, having devised an inter-colonial 
postal system. He advocated the rights of 
the colonies at all times, and procured the 
repeal of. the Stamp Act in 1766. He was 
elected to the Continental congress of 1775, 
and in 1776 was a signer of the Declaration 
of Independence, being one of the commit- 
tee appointed to draft that paper. He rep- 
resented the new nation in the courts of 
Europe, especially at Paris, where his simple 
dignity and homely wisdom won him the 
admiration of the court and the favor of the 
people. He was governor of Pennsylvania 
'our ve.ars; was also a member of the con- 



vention in 1787 that drafted the constitution 
of the United States. 

His writings upon political topics, anti- 
slavery, finance, and economics, stamp him 
as one of the greatest statesmen of his time, 
while his "Autobiography" and "Poor 
Richard's Almanac" give him precedence in 
the literary field. In early life he was an 
avowed skeptic in religious matters, but 
later in life his utterances on this subject 
were less extreme, though he never ex- 
pressed approval of any sect or creed. He 
died in Philadelphia April 17, 1790. 



DANIEL WEBSTER.— Of world wide 
reputation for statesmanship, diplo- 
macy, and oratory, there is perhaps no more 
prominent figure in the history of our coun- 
try in the interval between 1815 and 1861, 
than Daniel Webster. He was born at 
Salisbury (now Franklin), New Hampshire, 
January 18, 1782, and was the second son 
of Ebenezer and Abigail (Eastman) Webster. 
He enjoyed but limited educational advan- 
tages in childhood, but spent a few months 
in 1797, at Phillip Exeter Academy. He 
completed his preparation for college in the 
family of Rev. Samuel Wood, at Boscawen, 
and entered Dartmouth College in the fall 
of 1797. He supported himself most of the 
time during these years by teaching school 
and graduated in 1801, having the credit of 
being the foremost scholar of his class. He 
entered the law office of Hon. Thomas W. 
Thompson, at Salisbury. In 1802 he con- 
tinued his legal studies at Fryeburg, Maine, 
where he was principal of the academy and 
copyist in the office of the register of 
deeds. In the office of Christopher Gore, 
at Boston, he completed his studies in 
1804—5, an d was admitted to the bar in the 
latter year, and at Boscawen and at Ports- 
mouth soon rose to eminence in his profes- 



so 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHT. 



sion. He became known as a federalist 
but did not court political honors; but, at- 
tracting attention by his eloquence in oppos- 
ing the war with England, he was elected 
to congress in 1 812. During the special 
session of May, 18 13, he was appointed on 
the committee on foreign affairs and made 
his maiden speech June 10, 181 3. Through- 
out this session (as afterwards) he showed 
his mastery of the great economic questions 
of the day. He was re-elected in 18 14. In 
1 8 1 6 he removed to Boston and for seven 
years devoted himself to his profession, 
:arning by his arguments in the celebrated 
"Dartmouth College Case" rank among 
me most distinguished jurists of the country. 
!n 1S20 Mr. Webster was chosen a member 
Df the state convention of Massachusetts, to 
revise the constitution. The same year he 
delivered the famous discourse on the " Pil- 
grim fathers," which laid the foundation for 
his fame as an orator. Declining a nomi- 
nation for United States senator, in 1S22 he 
was elected to the lower house of congress 
and was re-elected in 1824 and 1826, but in 
1827 was transferred to the senate. He 
retained his seat in the latter chamber until 
1 841. During this time his voice was ever 
lifted in defence of the national life and 
honor and although politically opposed to 
him he ^ave his support to the administra- 
tion of President Jackson in the latter's con- 
test with nullification. Through all these 
years he was ever found upon the side of 
v'ight and justice and his speeches upon all 
the great questions of the day have be- 
,-,ome household words in almost every 
iamily. In 1841 Mr. Webster was appointed 
secretary of state by President Harrison 
and was continued in the same office by 
President Tyler. While an incumbent of 
this office he showed consummate ability as 
a diplomat in the negotiation of the " Ash- 



burton treaty " of August 9, 1849, which 
settled many points of dispute between the 
United States and England. In May, 1843, 
he resigned his post and resumed his pro- 
fession, and in December, 1845, took his 
place again in the senate. He contributed 
in an unofficial way to the solution of the 
Oregon question with Great Britain in 1847. 
He was disappointed in 1848 in not receiv- 
ing the nomination for the presidency. He 
became secretary of state under President 
Fillmore in 1850 and in dealing with all the 
complicated questions of the day showed a 
wonderful mastery of the arts of diplomacy. 
Being hurt in an accident he retired to his 
home at Marshfield, where he died Octo- 
ber 24, 1852. 

HORACE GREELEY.— As journalist, 
author, statesman and political leader, 
there is none more widely known than the 
man whose name heads this article. He 
was borri in Amherst, New Hampshire, Feb- 
ruary 3, 181 1, and was reared upon a farm. 
At an early age he evinced a remarkable 
intelligence and love of learning, and at 
the age of ten had - read every book he could 
borrow for miles around. About 1821 the 
family removed to Westhaven, Vermont, 
and for some years young Greeley assisted 
in carrying on the farm. In 1826 he entered 
the office of a weekly newspaper at East 
Poultney, Vermont, where he remained 
about four years. On the discontinuance 
of this paper he followed his father's 
family to Erie county, Pennsylvania, 
whither they had moved, and for a time 
worked at the printer's trade in that neigh- 
borhood. In 1 83 1 Horace went to New 
York City, and for a time found employ- 
ment as journeyman printer. January, 
1833, in partnership with Francis Story, he 
published the Morning Post, the first penny 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



21 



paper ever printed. This proved a failure 
and was discontinued after three weeks. 
The business of job printing was carried on, 
however, until the death of Mr. Story in 
July following. In company with Jonas 
Winchester, March 22, 1S34, Mr. Greeley 
commenced the publication of the New 
Yorker, a weekly paper of a high character. 
For financial reasons, at the same time, 
Greeley wrote leaders for other papers, and, 
in 1 8 3 S , took editorial charge of the Jeffer- 
sonian, a Whig paper published at Albany. 
In 1840, on the discontinuance of that sheet, 
he devoted his energies to the Log Cabin, a 
campaign paper in the interests of the Whig 
party. In the fall of 184 1 the latter paper 
was consolidated with the New Yorker, un- 
der the name of the Tribune, the first num- 
ber of which was issued April 10, 1841. At 
the head of this paper Mr. Greeley remained 
until the day of his death. 

In 1848 Horace Greeley was elected to 
the national house of representatives to 
fill a vacancy, and was a member of that 
body until March 4, 1849. In 1851 he went 
to Europe and served as a juror at the 
World's Fair at the Crystal Palace, Lon- 
don. In 1855, he made a second visit to 
the old world. In 1859 he crossed the 
plains and received a public reception at 
San Francisco and Sacramento. He was a 
member of the Republican national con- 
vention, at Chicago in i860, and assisted in 
the nomination of Abraham Lincoln for 
President. The same year he was a presi- 
dential elector for the state of New York, 
and a delegate to the Loyalist convention 
at Philadelphia. 

At the close of the war, in 1865, Mr. 
Greeley became a strong advocate of uni- 
versal amnesty and complete pacification, 
and in pursuance of this consented to be- 
come one of the bondsmen for Jefferson 



Davis, who was imprisoned for treason. In 
1867 he was a delegate to the New York 
state convention for the revision of the 
constitution. In 1870 he was defeated for 
congress in the Sixth New York district. 
At the Liberal convention, which met in 
Cincinnati, in May, 1872, on the fifth ballot 
Horace Greeley was nominated for presi- 
dent and July following was nominated for 
the same office by the Democratic conven- 
tion at Baltimore. He was defeated by a 
large majority. The large amount of work 
done by him during the campaign, together 
with the loss of his wife about the same 
time, undermined his strong constitution, 
and he was seized with inflammation of the 
brain, and died November 29, 1872. 

In addition to his journalistic work, Mr. 
Greeley was the author of several meritori- 
ous works, among which were: "Hints 
toward reform," "Glances at Europe," 
" History of the struggle for slavery exten 
sion," "Overland journey to San Francis- 
co," "The American conflict," and " Rec- 
ollections of a busy life." 



HENRY CLAY.— In writing of this em- 
inent American, Horace Greeley once 
said: "He was a matchless party chief, an 
admirable orator, a skillful legislator, wield- 
ing unequaled influence, not only over his 
friends, but even over those of his political 
antagonists who were subjected to the magic 
of his conversation and manners. " A law- 
yer, legislator, orator, and statesman, few 
men in history have wielded greater influ- 
ence, or occupied so prominent a place in 
the hearts of the generation in which they 
lived. 

Henry Clay was born near Richmond, 
in Hanover county, Virginia, April 12, 
1777, the son of a poor Baptist preacher 
who died when Henry was but five years 



22 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



old. The mother married again about ten 
years later and :emoved 10 Kentucky leav- 
ing Henry a clerk in a store at Richmond. 
Soon afterward Henry Clay secured a posi- 
tion as copyist in the office of the clerk of the 
high court of chancery, and four years later 
entered the law office of Robert Brooke, 
then attorney general and later governor of 
his native state. In 1797 Henry Clay was 
licensed as a lawyer and followed his mother 
to Kentucky, opening an office at Lexington 
and soon built up a profitable practice. 
Soon afterward Kentucky, in separating from 
Virginia, called a state convention for the 
purpose of framing a constitution, and Clay 
at that time took a prominent part, publicly 
urging the adoption of a clause providing 
for the abolition of slavery, but in this he 
was overruled, as he was fifty years later, 
when in the height of his fame he again ad- 
vised the same course when the state con- 
stitution was revised in 1850. Young Clay 
took a very active and conspicuous part in 
the presidential campaign in 1800, favoring 
the election of Jefferson; and in 1803 was 
chosen to represent Fayette county in the 
state ; egislature. In 1806 General John 
Adair, then United States senator from 
Kentucky, resigned and Henry Clay was 
elected to fill the vacancy by the legislature 
and served through one session in which he 
at once assumed a prominent place. In 
1807 he was again a representative in the 
legislature and was elected speaker of the 
house. At this time originated his trouble 
with Humphrey Marshall. Clay proposed 
that eacli member clothe himself and family 
wholly in American fabrics, wliich Marshall 
characterized as the " language of a dema- 
gogue." This led to a duel in which both 
parties were slightly injured. In 1809 
Henry Clay was again elected to fill a va- 
cancy 111 the United States senate, and two 



years later elected representative in tne low- 
er house of congress, being chosen speaker 
of the house. About this time war was de- 
clared against Great Britain, and Clay took 
a prominent public place during this strug- 
gle and was later one of the commissioners 
sent to Europe by President Madison to ne- 
gotiate peace, returning in September, 1S15. 
having been re-elected speaker of the 
house during his absence, and was re-elect- 
ed unanimously. He was afterward re- 
elected to congress and then became secre- 
tary of state under John Quincy Adams. 
In 1 83 1 he was again elected senator from 
Kentucky and remained in the senate most 
of the time until his death. 

Henry Clay was three times a candidate 
for the presidency, and once very nearly 
elected. He was the unanimous choice of 
the Whig party in 1 844 for the presidency, 
and a great effort was made to elect him 
but without success, his opponent, James K. 
Polk, carrying both Pennsylvania and New 
York by a very slender margin, while either 
of them alone would have elected Clay. 
Henry Clay died at Washington June 29, 
1852. 

JAMES GILLESPIE BLAINE was one 
of the most distinguished of American 
statesmen and legislators. He was born 
January 31, 1S30, in Washington county, 
Pennsylvania, and received a thorough edu- 
cation, graduating at Washington College in 
1847. In early life he removed to Maine 
and engaged in newspaper work, becoming 
editor of the Portland ' 'Advertiser. " While 
yet a young man he gained distinction as a 
debater and became a conspicuous figure in 
political and public affairs. In 1862 he was 
elected to congress on the Republican ticket 
in Maine and was re-elected five times. In 
March, 1869, he was chosen speaker of the 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



23 



house of representatives and was re-elected 
in 1 87 1 and again in 1873. In 1876 he was 
a representative in the lower house of con- 
gress and during that year was appointed 
United States senator by the Governor to 
fill a vacancy caused by the resignation of 
Senator Morrill, who had been appointed 
secretary of the treasury. Mr. Blaine 
served in the senate until March 5, 1881, 
when President Garfield appointed him sec- 
retary of state, which position he resigned 
in December, 1881. Mr. Blaine was nom- 
inated for the presidency by the Republic- 
ans, at Chicago in June, 1884, but was de- 
feated by Grover Cleveland after an exciting 
and spirited campaign. During the later 
years of his life Mr. Blaine devoted most of 
his time to the completion of his work 
"Twenty Years in Congress," which had a 
remarkably large sale throughout the United 
States. Blaine was a man of great mental 
ability and force of character and during the 
latter part of his life was one of the most 
noted men of his time. He was the origina- 
tor of what is termed the " reciprocity idea" 
in tariff matters, and outlined the plan of 
carrying it into practical effect. In 1876 
Robert G. Ingersoll in making a nominating 
speech placing Blaine's name as a candidate 
for president before the national Republican 
convention at Cincinnati, referred to Blaine 
as the " Plumed Knight " and this title clung 
to him during the remainder of his life. His 
death occurred at Washington, January 27, 
1893. 

JOHN CALDWELL CALHOUN, a dis- 
<J tinguished American statesman, was a 
native of South Carolina, born in Abbeville 
district, March 18, 1782. He was given 
the advantages of a thorough education, 
graduating at Yale College in 1804, and 
adopted the caiiing of a lawyer. A Demo- 



crat politically, at that time, he took a fore- 
most part in the councils of his party and 
was elected to congress in 181 1, supporting 
the tariff of 1816 and the establishing of 
the United States Bank. In 18 17 he be- 
came secretary of war in President Monroe's 
cabinet, and in 1 824 was elected vice-president 
of the United States, on the ticket with John 
Quincy Adams, and re-elected in 1 828, on the 
ticket with General Jackson. Shortly after 
this Mr. Calhoun became one of the strongest 
advocates of free trade and the principle of 
sovereignty of the states and was one of 
the originators of the doctrine that "any 
state could nullify unconstitutional laws of 
congress." Meanwhile Calhoun had be- 
come an aspirant for the presidency, and 
the fact that General Jackson advanced the 
interests of his opponent, Van Buren, led 
to a quarrel, and Calhoun resigned the vice- 
presidency in 1832 and was elected United 
States senator from South Carolina. It was 
during the same year that a convention was 
held in South Carolina at which the " Nul- 
lification ordinance " was adopted, the ob- 
ject of which was to test the constitution- 
ality of the protective tariff measures, and 
to prevent if possible the collection of im- 
port duties in that state which had been 
levied more for the purpose of "protection ' 
than revenue. This ordinance was to go 
into effect in February, 1833, and created a 
great deal of uneasiness throughout the 
country as it was feared there would be a 
clash between the state and federal authori- 
ties. It was in this serious condition or 
public affairs that Henry Clay came forward 
with the the famous "tariff compromise" 
of 1833, to which measure Calhoun and 
most of his followers gave their support and 
the crisis was averted. In 1843 Mr. Cal- 
houn was appointed secretary of state in 
President Tyler's cabinet, and it was under 



24 



COMPENDIUM OJ? BIOGRAPHT. 



his administration that the treaty concern- 
ing the annexation of Texas was negotiated. 
In 1845 he was re-elected to the United 
Stales senate and continued in the senate 
until his death, which occurred in March, 
1850. He occupied a high rank as a scholar, 
student and orator, and it is conceded that 
he was one of the greatest debaters America 
has produced. The famous debate between 
Calhoun and Webster, in 1833, is regarded 
as the most noted for ability and eloquence 
in the history of the country. 



BENJAMIN FRANKLIN BUTLER, one 
of America's most brilliant and pro- 
found lawyers and noted public men, was 
a native of New England, born at Deer- 
field, New Hampshire, November 5, 181 8. 
His father, Captain John Butler, was a 
prominent man in his day, commanded a 
company during the war of 1812, and 
served under Jackson at New Orleans. 
Benjamin F. Butler was given an excellent 
education, graduated at Waterville College, 
Maine, studied law, was admitted to the 
bar in 1840, at Lowell, Massachusetts, 
where he commenced the practice of his 
profession and gained a wide reputation for 
his ability at the bar, acquiring an extensive 
practice and a fortune. Early in life he 
began taking an active interest in military 
affairs and served in the state militia through 
all grades from private to brigadier-general. 
In 1853 he was elected to the state legisla- 
ture on the Democratic ticket in Lowell, 
and took a prominent part in the passage of 
legislation in the interests of labor. Dur- 
ing the same year he was a member of the 
constitutional convention, and in 1859 rep- 
resented his district in the Massachusetts 
senate. When the Civil war broke out 
General Butler took the field and remained 
at the front most of the time during that 



bloody struggle. Part of tne time he had 
charge of Fortress Monroe, and in Febru- 
ary, 1S62, took command of troops forming 
part of the expedition against New Orleans, 
and later had charge of the department of 
the Gulf. He was a conspicuous figure dur- 
ing the continuance of the war. After the 
close of hostilities General Butler resumed 
his law practice in Massachusetts and in 
1866 was elected to congress from the Es- 
sex district. In 1882 he was elected gov- 
ernor of Massachusetts, and in 1884 was the 
nominee of the "Greenback" party for 
president of the United States. He con- 
tinued his legal practice, and maintained his 
place as one of the most prominent men in 
New England until the time of his death, 
which occurred January 10, 1893. 



JEFFERSON DAVIS, an officer, states- 
man and legislator of prominence in 
America, gained the greater part of his fame 
from the fact that he was president of the 
southern confederacy. Mr. Davis was burn 
in Christian county. Kentucky, June 3, 
1808, and his early education and surround- 
ings were such that his sympathies and in- 
clinations were wholly with the southern 
people. He received a thorough education, 
graduated at West Point in 1828. and for a 
number of years served in the army at west- 
ern posts and in frontier service, first as 
lieutenant and later as adjutant. In 1835 
he resigned and became a cotton planter in 
Warren county, Mississippi, where he took 
an active interest in public affairs and be- 
came a conspicuous figure in politics. In 
1844 he was a presidential elector from 
Mississippi and during the two following 
years served as congressman from his d ; s- 
trict. He then became colonel of a Missis- 
sippi regiment in the war with Mexico ana 
participated in some of the most severe l .u- 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPFIT. 



25 



ties, being seriously wounded at Buena 
Vista. Upon his return to private life he 
again took a prominent part in political af- 
fairs and represented his state in the United 
States senate from 1847 to 185 1. He then 
entered President Pierce's cabinet as secre- 
tary of war, after which he again entered 
the United States senate, remaining until 
the outbreak of the Civil war. He then be- 
came president of the southern confederacy 
and served as such until captured in May, 
1865, at Irwinville, Georgia. He was held 
as prisoner of war at Fortress Monroe, until 
1867, when he was released on bail and 
finally set free in 1868. His death occurred 
December 6, 1889. 

Jefferson Davis was a man of excellent 
abilities and was recognized as one of the 
best organizers of his day. He was a 
forceful and fluent speaker and a ready 
writer. He wrote and published the " Rise 
and Fall of the Southern Confederacy," a 
work which is considered as authority by 
the southern people 



JOHN ADAMS, the second president of 
the United States, and one of the most 
conspicuous figures in the early struggles of 
his country for independence, was born in 
the present town of Quincy, then a portion 
of Braintree, Massachusetts, October 30, 
1 735. He received a thorough education, 
graduating at Harvard College in 1755, 
studied law and was admitted to the bar in 
1758. He was well adapted for this profes- 
sion and after opening an office in his native 
town rapidly grew in prominence and public 
favor and soon was regarded as one of the 
leading lawyers of the country. His atten- 
tion was called to political affairs by the 
passage of the Stamp Act, in 1765, and he 
drew up a set of resolutions on the subject 
which were very popular. In 1768 he re- 



moved to Boston and became one of the 
most courageous and prominent advocates 
of the popular cause and was chosen a 
member of the Colonial legislature from 
Boston. He was one of the delegates that 
represented Massachusetts in the first Con- 
tinental congress, which met in September, 
1774. In a letter written at this crisis he 
uttered the famous words: "The die is now 
cast; I have passed the Rubicon. Sink or 
swim, live or die, survive or perish with my 
country, is my unalterable determination." 
He was a prominent figure in congress and 
advocated the movement for independence 
when a majority of the members were in- 
clined to temporize and to petition the King. 
In May, 1776, he presented a resolution in 
congress that the colonies should assume 
the duty of self-government, which was 
passed. In June, of the same year, a reso- 
lution that the United States "are, and ol 
right ought to be, free and independent," 
was moved by Richard H. Lee, seconded by 
Mr. Adams and adopted by a small majority 
Mr. Adams was a member of the committee 
of five appointed June 1 1 to prepare a 
declaration of independence, in support of 
which he made an eloquent speech. He was 
chairman of the Board of War in 1776 and 
in 1778 was sent as commissioner to France, 
but returned the following year. In 1780 
he went to Europe, having been appointed 
as minister to negotiate a treaty of peace 
and commerce with Great Britain. Con- 
jointly with Franklin and Jay he negotiated 
a treaty in 1782. He was employed as a 
minister to the Court of St. James from 
1785 to 1788, and during that period wrote 
his famous "Defence of the American Con- 
stitutions." In 1789 he became vice-presi- 
dent of the United States and was re-elected 
in 1792. 

In 1 796 Mr. Adams was chosen presi- 



2G 



COMPEXDirM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



dent of the United States, his competitor 
being Thomas Jefferson, who became vice- 
president. In 1800 he was the Federal 
candidate for president, but he was not 
cordially supported by Gen. Hamilton, the 
favorite leader of his party, and was de- 
feated by Thomas Jefferson. 

Mr. Adams then retired from public life 
to his large estate at Quincy, Mass. , where 
he died July 4, 1826, on the same day that 
witnessed the death of Thomas Jefferson. 
Though his physical frame began to give way 
many years before his death, his mental 
powers retained their strength and vigor to 
the last. In his ninetieth year he was glad- 
dened by .the elevation of his son, John 
Quincy Adams, to the presidential office. 



HENRY WARD BEECHER, one of the 
most celebrated American preachers 
and authors, was born at Litchfield, Connec- 
ticut, June 24, 1 8 1 3. His father was Dr. Ly- 
man Beechcr, also an eminent divine. At 
an early age Henry Ward Beecher had a 
strong predilection for a sea-faring life, and 
it was practically decided that he would fol- 
low this inclination, but about this time, in 
consequence of deep religious impressions 
which he experienced during a revival, he 
renounced his former intention ami decided 
to enter the ministry. After having grad- 
uated at Amherst College, in [834, he stud- 
ied theology at Lane Seminary under the 
tuition of his father, who was then president 
of that institution. In 1847 he became pas- 
tor of the Plymouth Congregational church 
in Brooklyn, where his oratorical ability and 
original eloquence attracted one of the larg- 
est congregations in the country. He con- 
tinued to served this church until the time 
of his death, March 8, 1887. Mr. Beecher 
f ound time for a great amount of liter- 
ary work. For a number of years he was 



editor of the "Independent" and also the 
" Christian Union. " He also produced many 
works which are widely known. Among his 
principal productions are ' 'Lectures to Young 
Men," " Star Papers, " "Life of Christ," 
"Life Thoughts," "Royal Truths" (a 
novel), "Norwood," " Evolution and Rev- 
olution," and " Sermons on Evolution and 
Religion." Mr. Beecher was also long a 
prominent advocate of anti-slavery princi- 
ples and temperance reform, and, at a later 
period, of the rights of women. 



JOHN A. LOGAN, the illustrious states- 
man and general, was born in Jackson 
county, Illinois, February 9, 1S24. In his 
boyhood days he received but a limited edu- 
cation in the schools of his native county. 
On the breaking out of the war with Mexico 
he enlisted in the First Illinois Volunteers 
and became its quartermaster. At the close 
of hostilities he returned home and was 
elected clerk of the courts of Jackson county 
in 1849. Determining to supplement his 
education Logan entered the Louisville Uni- 
versity, from which he graduated in 1852 
and taking up the study of law was admitted 
to the bar. He attained popularity and suc- 
cess in his chosen profession and was elected 
to the legislature in 1852, 1853, 1856 and 
1857. He was prosecuting attorney from 
1853 to 1857. He was elected to congress 
in 1858 to (ill a vacancy and again in i860. 
At t he outbreak of the Rebellion, Logan re- 
signed Ins office and entered the army, and 
in September, 1861, was appointed colonel 
of the Thirty-first Illinois Infantry, which he 
led in the battles of Belmont and Fort Don- 
elson. In the latter engagement he was 
wounded. In March, 1862, he was pro- 
moted to be brigadier-general and in the 
following month participated in the battles 
of Pittsburg Landing. In November, 1862, 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHl'. 



29 



for gallant conduct he was made major-gen- 
eral. Throughout the Vicksburg campaign 
he was in command of a division of the Sev- 
enteenth Corps and was distinguished at 
Port Gibson, Champion Hills and in the 
siege and capture cf Vicksburg. In October, 
1863, he was placed in command of the 
Fifteenth Corps, which he led with great 
credit. During the terrible conflict before 
Atlanta, July 22, 1864, on the death of 
General McPherson, Logan, assuming com- 
mand of the Army of the Tennessee, led it 
on to victory, saving the day by his energy 
and ability. He was shortly after succeeded 
by General O. O. Howard and returned to 
the command of his corps. He remained 
in command until the presidential election, 
when, feeling that his influence was needed 
at home he returned thither and there re- 
mained until the arrival of Sherman at Sa- 
vannah, when General Logan rejoined his 
command. In May, 1865, he succeeded 
General Howard at the head of the Army of 
the Tennessee. He resigned from the army 
in August, the same year, and in November 
was appointed minister to Mexico, but de- 
clined the honor. He served in the lower 
house of the fortieth and forty-first con- 
gresses, and was elected United States sena- 
tor from his native state in 1870, 1878 and 
1885. He was nominated for the vice-presi- 
dency in 1884 on the ticket with Blaine, but 
was defeated. General Logan was the 
author of "The Great Conspiracy, its origin 
and history," published in 1885. He died 
at Washington, December 26, 1886. 



JOHN CHARLES FREMONT, the first 
Republican candidate for president, was 
born in Savannah, Georgia, January 21, 
18 1 3. He graduated from Charleston Col- 
lege (South Carolina') in 1830, and turned his 

attention to civil engineering. He was shortly 
2 



afterward employed in the department of 
government surveys on the Mississippi, and 
constructing maps of that region. He was 
made lieutenant of engineers, and laid be- 
fore the war department a plan for p< ne- 
trating the Rocky Mountain regions, which 
was accepted, and in 1842 he set out upon 
his first famous exploring expedition and ex- 
plored the South Pass. He also planned an 
expedition to Oregon by a new route further 
south, but afterward joined his expedition 
with that of Wilkes in the region of the 
Great Salt Lake. He made a later expedi- 
tion which penetrated the Sierra Nevadas, 
and the San Joaquin and Sacramento river 
valleys, making maps of all regions explored. 
In 1845 ne conducted the great expedi- 
tion which resulted in the acquisition of 
California, which it was believed the Mexi- 
can government was about to dispose of to 
England. Learning that the Mexican gov- 
ernor was preparing to attack tne American 
settlements in his dominion, Fremont deter- 
mined to forestall him. The settlers rallied 
to his camp, and in June, 1846, he defeated 
the Mexican forces at Sonoma Pass, and a 
month later completely routed the governor 
and his entire army. The Americans at 
once declared their independence of Mexico, 
and Fremont was elected governor of Cali- 
fornia. By this time Commodore Stockton 
had reached the coast with instructions from 
Washington to conquer California. Fre- 
mont at once joined him in that effort, which 
resulted in the annexation of California with 
its untold mineral wealth. Later Fremont 
became involved in a difficulty with fellow 
officers which resulted in a court martial, 
and the surrender of his commission. He 
declined to accept reinstatement. He af- 
terward laid out a great road from the Mis- 
sissippi river to San Francisco, and became 
the first United States senator from Califor- 



80 



COMPEXJ)IL'M OF BIOGRAPHr. 



nia, in 1849. In 1856 he was nominated 
by the new Republican party as its first can- 
didate for president against Buchanan, and 
received 1 14 electoral votes, out of 296. 

In 1 86 1 he was made major-general and 
placed in charge of the western department. 
He planned the reclaiming of the entire 
Mississippi valley, and gathered an army of 
thirty thousand men, with plenty of artil- 
lery, and was ready to move upon the con- 
federate General Price, when he was de- 
prived of his command. He was nominated 
for the presidency at Cincinnati in 1864, but 
withdrew. He was governor of Arizona in 
1878, holding the position four years. He 
was interested in an engineering enterprise 
looking toward a great southern trans-con- 
tinental railroad, and in his later years also 
practiced law in New York. He died July 13, 
1890. 

WENDELL PHILLIPS, the orator and 
abolitionist, and a conspicuous figure 
in American history, was born November 
29, 181 1, at Boston, Massachusetts. He 
received a good education at Harvard 
College, from which he graduated in 1831, 
and then entered the Cambridge Law School. 
After completing his course in that institu- 
tion, in 1833, he was admitted to the bar, 
in 1834, at Suffolk. He entered the arena 
of life at the time when the forces of lib- 
erty and slavery had already begun their 
struggle that was to culminate in the Civil 
war. William Lloyd Garrison, by his clear- 
headed, courageous declarations of the anti- 
slavery principles, had done much to bring 
about this struggle. Mr. Phillips was not a 
man that could stand aside and see a great 
struggle being carried on in the interest of 
humanity and look passively on. He first 
attracted attention as an orator in 1837, at 
a meeting that was called to protest against 



the murder of the Rev. Elijah P. Lovejoy. 
The meeting would have ended in a few 
perfunctory resolutions had not Mr. Phillip? 
by his manly eloquence taken the meeting 
out of the hands of the few that were in- 
clined to temporize and avoid radical utter- 
ances. Having once started out in this ca- 
reer as an abolitionist Phillips never swerved 
from what he deemed his duty, and never 
turned back. He gave up his legal practice 
and launched himself heart and soul in the 
movement for the liberation of the slaves. 
He was an orator of very great" ability and 
by his earnest efforts and eloquence he did 
much in arousing public sentiment in behalf 
of the anti-slavery cause — possibly more 
than any one man of his time. After the 
abolition of slavery Mr. Phillips was, if pos- 
sible, even busier than before in the literary 
and lecture field. Besides temperance and 
women's rights, he lectured often and wrote 
much on finance, and the relations of labor 
and capital, and his utterances on whatever 
subject always bore the stamp of having 
emanated from a master mind. Eminent 
critics have stated that it might fairly be 
questioned whether there has ever spoken 
in America an orator superior to Phillips. 
The death of this great man occurred Feb- 
ruary 4, 1884. 



WILLIAM TECUMSEH SHERMAN 
was one of the greatest generals that 
the world has ever produced and won im- 
mortal fame by that strategic and famous 
" march to the sea," in the war of the Re- 
bellion. He was born February 8, 1820, at 
Lancaster, Ohio, and was reared in the 
family of the Hon. Thomas Ewing, as his 
father died when he was but nine years of 
age. He entered West Point in 1836, was 
graduated from the same in 1840, and ap- 
pointed a second lieutenant in the Third 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRATHT. 



31 



Artillery. He passed through the various 
grades of the service and at the outbreak of 
the Civil war was appointed colonel of the 
Thirteenth Regular Infantry. A full history 
of General Sherman's conspicuous services 
would be to repeat a history of the army. 
He commanded a division at Shiloh, and 
was instrumental in the winning of that bat- 
tle, and was also present at the siege of Vicks- 
burg. On July 4, 1863, he was appointed 
brigadier-general of the regular army, and 
shared with Hooker the victory of Mission- 
ary Ridge. He was commander of the De- 
partment of the Tennessee from October 
27th until the appointment of General 
Grant as lieutenant-general, by whom he 
was appointed to the command of the De- 
partment of the Mississippi, which he as- 
sumed in March, 1864. He at once began 
organizing the army and enlarging his com- 
munications preparatory to his march upon 
Atlanta, which he started the same time of 
the beginning of the Richmond campaign by 
Grant. He started on May 6, and was op- 
posed by Johnston, who had fifty thousand 
men, but by consummate generalship, he 
captured Atlanta, on September 2, after 
several months of hard fighting and a severe 
loss of men. General Sherman started on 
his famous march to the sea November 15, 
1864, and by December 10 he was before 
Savannah, which he took on December 23. 
This campaign is a monument to the genius 
of General Sherman as he only lost 567 
men from Atlanta to the sea. After rest- 
ing his army he moved northward and occu- 
pied the following places: Columbia, 
Cheraw, Fayetteville, Ayersboro, Benton- 
ville, Goldsboro, Raleigh, and April 18, he 
accepted the surrender of Johnston's army 
on a basis of agreement that was not re- 
ceived by the Government with favor, but 
finally accorded Johnston the same terms as 



Lee was given by General Grant. He was 
present at the grand review at Washington, 
and after the close of the war was appointed 
to the command of the military division of 
the Mississippi; later was appointed lieu- 
tenant-general, and assigned to the military 
division of the Missouri. When General 
Grant was elected president Sherman became 
general, March 4, 1869, and succeeded to 
the command of the army. His death oc- 
curred February 14, 1891, at Washington. 



ALEXANDER HAMILTON, one of the 
most prominent of the early American 
statesmen and financiers, was born in Nevis, 
an island of the West Indies, January 11, 
1757, his father being a Scotchman and his 
mother of Huguenot descent. Owing to the 
death of his mother and business reverses 
which came to his father, young Hamilton 
was sent to his mother's relatives in Santa 
Cruz; a few years later was sent to a gram- 
mar school at Elizabethtown, New Jersey, 
and in 1773 entered what is now known as 
Columbia College. Even at that time he 
began taking an active part in public affairs 
and his speeches, pamphlets, and newspaper 
articles on political affairs of the day at- 
tracted considerable attention. In 1776 he 
received a captain's commission and served 
in Washington's army with credit, becoming 
aide-de-camp to Washington with rank of 
lieutenant-colonel. In 1 781 he resigned his 
commission because of a rebuke from Gen- 
eral Washington. He next received com- 
mand of a New York battalion and partici- 
pated in the battle of Yorktown. After 
this Hamilton studied law, served several 
terms in congress and was a member of the 
convention at which the Federal Constitu- 
tion was drawn up. His work connected 
with " The Federalist " at about this time 
attracted much attention. Mr. Hamilton 



32 



COMPEXDILM OF BIOGRAPHF 



was chosen as the first secretary of the 
United States treasury and as such was the 
author of the funding system and founder of 
the United States Bank. In 1798 he was 
made inspector-general of the army with the 
rank of major-general and was also for a 
short time commander-in-chief. In 1804 
Aaron Burr, then candidate for governor of 
New York, challenged Alexander Hamilton 
to fight a duel, Burr attributing his defeat 
to Hamilton's opposition, and Hamilton, 
though declaring the code as a relic of bar- 
barism, accepted the challenge. They met 
at Weehawken, New Jersey, July 11, 1804. 
Hamilton declined to fire at his adversary, 
but at Burr's first fire was fatally wounded 
and died July 12, 1804. 



ALEXANDER HAMILTON STEPH- 
ENS, vice-president of the southern 
confederacy, a former United States senator 
and governor of Georgia, ranks among the 
great men of American history. He was born 
February 11, 1S12, near Crawfordsville, 
Georgia. He was a graduate of the Uni- 
versity of Georgia, and admitted to the bar 
in 1834. In 1837 he made his debut in 
political life as a member of the state house 
of representatives, and in 1 841 declined the 
nomination for the same office; but in 1S42 
he was chosen by the same constituency 
state senator. Mr. Stephens was one of 
the promoters of the Western and Atlantic 
Railroad. In 1843 he was sent by his dis- 
trict to the national house of representath 
which office he held for sixteen consec- 
utive years. He was a member of the 
house during the passing of the Compromise 
Bill, and was one of its ablest and most 
active supporters. The same year (iS 
Mr. Stephens was a delegate to the state 
convention that framed the celebrated 
" Georgia Platform," and was also a dele- 



gate to the convention that passed the ordi- 
nance of secession, though he bitterly op- 
posed that bill by voice and vote, yet he 
readily acquiesced in their decision after 
it received the votes of the majority of the 
convention. He was chosen vice-president 
of the confederacy without opposition, and 
in 1865 he was the head of the commis- 
sion sent by the south to the Hampton 
Roads conference. He was arrested after 
the fall of the confederacy and was con- 
fined in Fort Warren as a prisoner of state 
but was released on his own parole. Mr. 
Stephens was elected to the forty-third, 
forty-fourth, forty-fifth, forty-sixth and for- 
ty-seventh congresses, with hardly more than 
nominal opposition. He was one of the 
Jeffersonian school of American politics. 
He wrote a number of works, principal 
among which are: "Constitutional View 
of the War between the States," and a 
" Compendium of the History of the United 
States." He was inaugurated as governor 
of Georgia November 4th, 1882, but died 
March 4, 1883, before the completion of 
his term. 

ROSCOE CONKLING was one of the 
most noted and famous of American 
statesmen. He was among the most fin- 
ished, fluent and eloquent orators that have 
ever graced the halls of the American con- 
gress; ever ready, witty and bitter in de- 
bate' he was at once admired and feared by 
his political opponents and revered by his 
followers. True to his friends, loyal to the 
last degree to those with whom his inter- 
ests were associated, he was unsparing to his 
foes and it is said "never forgot an injury." 
Roscoe Conkling was born at Albany. 
New York, on the 30th of October, 1829, 
being a son of Alfred Conkling. Alfred 
Conkling was also a native of New York, 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



born at East Hampton, October 12, 1789, 
and became one of the most eminent law- 
yers in the Empire state; published several 
legal works; served a term in congress; aft- 
erward as United States district judge for 
Northern New York, and in 1852 was min- 
ister to Mexico. Alfred Conkling died in 

1874. 

Roscoe Conkling, whose name heads 
this article, at an early age took up the 
study of law and soon became successful and 
prominent at the bar. About 1846 he re- 
moved to Utica and in 1858 was elected 
mayor of that city. He was elected repre- 
sentative in congress from this district and 
was re-elected three times. In 1867 he was 
elected United States senator from the state 
of New York and was re-elected in 1873 
and 1879. In May, 1881, he resigned on 
account of differences with the president. 
In March, 1882, he was appointed and con- 
firmed as associate justice of the United 
States supreme court but declined to serve. 
His death occurred April 18, 1 



WASHINGTON IRVING, one of the 
most eminent, talented and popu- 
lar of American authors, was born in New 
York City, April 3, 1783. His father was 
William Irving, a merchant and a native of 
Scotland, who had married an English lady 
and emigrated to America some twenty 
years prior to the birth of Washington. 
Two of the older sons, William and Peter, 
were partially occupied with newspaper 
work and literary pursuits, and this fact 
naturally inclined Washington to follow 
their example. Washington Irving was given 
the advantages afforded by the common 
schools until about sixteen years of age 
when he began studying law, but continued 
to acquire his literary training by diligent 
perusal at home of the older English writers. 



When nineteen he made his first literary- 
venture by printing in the ' ' Morning Chroni- 
cle," then edited by his brother, Dr. Peter 
Irving, a series of local sketches under the 
nom-de-plume of " Jonathan Oldstyle." In 
1804 he began an extensive trip through 
Europe, returned in 1806, quickly com- 
pleted his legal studies and was admitted to 
the bar, but never practiced the profession. 
In 1807 he began the amusing serial "Sal- 
magundi," which had an immediate suc- 
cess, and not only decided his future 
career but long determined the charac- 
ter of his writings. In 1808, assisted by 
his brother Peter, he wrote " Knickerbock- 
er's History of New York," and in 18 10 an 
excellent biography of Campbell, the poet, 
After this, for some time, Irving's attention 
was occupied by mercantile interests, but 
the commercial house in which he was a 
partner failed in 18 17. In 18 14 he was 
editor of the Philadelphia " Analectic Maga- 
zine." About 1 8 1 8 appeared his "Sketch- 
Book," over the nom-de-plume of ' 'Geoffrey 
Crayon," which laid the foundation of Ir- 
ving's fortune and permanent fame. This 
was soon followed by the legends of 
"Sleepy Hollow," and " Rip Van Winkle," 
which at once took high rank as literary 
productions, and Irving's reputation was 
firmly established in both the old and new 
worlds. After this the path of Irving was 
smooth, and his subsequent writings ap- 
peared with rapidity, including "Brace- 
bridge Hall," "The Tales of a Traveler," 
" History of the Life and Voyages of Chris- 
topher Columbus," "The Conquest of 
Granada," "The Alhambra," "Tour on 
the Prairies," "Astoria," "Adventures of 
Captain Bonneville," " Wolfert's Roost," 
" Mahomet and his Successors," and "Life 
of Washington," besides other works. 

Washington Irving was never married. 



34 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



He resided during the closing years of his 
life at Sunnyside (Tarrytown) on the Hud- 
son, where he died November 28, 1859. 



CHARLES SUMNER.— Boldly outlined 
on the pages of our history stands out 
the rugged figure of Charles Sumner, states- 
man, lawyer and writer. A man of unim- 
peachable integrity, indomitable will and 
with the power of tireless toil, he was a fit 
leader in troublous times. First in rank as 
an anti-slavery leader in the halls of con- 
gress, he has stamped his image upon the 
annals of his time. As an orator he took 
front rank and, in wealth of illustration, 
rhetoric and lofty tone his eloquence equals 
, anything to be found in history. 

Charles Sumner was born in Boston, 
Massachusetts, January 6, 181 1, and was 
the son of Charles P. and Relief J. Sumner. 
The family had long been prominent in that 
state. Charles was educated at the Boston 
Public Latin School; entered Harvard Col- 
lege in 1826, and graduated therefrom in 
1830. In 1 83 1 he joined the Harvard Law 
School, then under charge of Judge Story, 
and gave himself up to the study of law 
with enthusiasm. His leisure was devoted 
to contributing to the American Jurist. Ad- 
mitted to the bar in 1834 he was appointed 
reporter to the circuit court by Judge Story. 
He published several works about this time, 
and from 1835 to 1837 and again in 1843 
was lecturer in the law school. He had 
planned a lawyer's life, but in 1845 he gave 
his attention to politics, speakingand working 
against the admission of Texas to the Union 
and subsequently against the Mexican war. 
In 1848 he was defeated for congress on the 
Free Soil ticket. His stand on the anti- 
slavery question at that time alienated both 
friends and clients, but he never swerved 
from his convictions. In 1851 he was elected 



to the United States senate and took his 
seat therein December 1 of that year. From 
this time his life became the history of the 
anti-slavery cause in congress. In August, 
1852, he began his attacks on slavery by a 
masterly argument for the repeal of the 
fugitive slave law. On May 22, 1856, Pres- 
ton Brooks, nephew of Senator Butler, of 
South Carolina, made an attack upon Mr. 
Sumner, at his desk in the senate, striking 
him over the head with a heavy cane. The 
attack was quite serious in its effects and 
kept Mr. Sumner absent from his seat in the 
senate for about four years. In 1857, 1863 
and 1S69 he was re-elected to the office of 
senator, passing some twenty-three years in 
that position, always advocating the rights 
of freedom and equity. He died March II, 
1374- 

THOMAS JEFFERSON, the third pres- 
ident of the United States, was born 
near Charlottesville, Albemarle county, Vir- 
ginia, April 13, 1743, and was the son ot 
Peter and Jane (Randolph) Jefferson. He 
received the elements of a good education, 
and in 1760 entered William and Mary Col- 
lege. After remaining in that institution for 
two years he took up the study of law with 
George Wythe, of Williamsburg, Virginia, 
one of the foremost lawyers of his day, and 
was admitted to practice in 1767. He ob- 
tained a large and profitable practice, which 
he held for eight years. The conflict be- 
tween Great Britain and the Colonies then 
drew him into public life, he having for 
some time given his attention to the study 
of the sources of law, the origin of liberty 
and equal rights. 

Mr. Jefferson was elected to the Virginia 
house of burgesses in 1769, and served in 
that body several years, a firm supporter of 
liberal measures, and, although a slave- 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



35 



holder himself, an opponent of slavery. 
With others, he was a leader among the op- 
position to the king. He took his place as 
a member of the Continental congress June 
2i, 1775, and after serving on several com- 
mittees was appointed to draught a Declara- 
tion of Independence, which he did, some 
corrections being suggested by Dr. Franklin 
and John Adams. This document was pre- 
sented to congress June 28, 1776, and after 
six days' debate was passed and was signed. 
In the following September Mr. Jefferson 
resumed his seat in the Virginia legislature, 
and gave much time to the adapting of laws 
of that state to the new condition of things. 
He drew up the law, the first ever passed by 
a legislature or adopted by a government, 
which secured perfect religious freedom. 
June 1, 1779, he succeeded Patrick Henry 
as governor of Virginia, an office which, 
after co-operating with Washington in de- 
fending the country, he resigned two years 
later. One of his own estates was ravaged 
by the British, and his house at Monticello 
was held by Tarleton for several days, and 
Jefferson narrowly escaped capture. After 
the death of his wife, in 1782, he accepted 
the position of plenipotentiary to France, 
which he had declined in 1776. Before 
leaving he served a short time in congress 
at Annapolis, and succeeded in carrying a 
bill for establishing our present decimal sys- 
tem of currency, one of his most useful pub- 
lic services. He remained in an official ca- 
pacity until October, 1789, and was a most 
active and vigilant minister. Besides the 
onerous duties of his office, during this time, 
he published "Notes on Virginia," sent to 
the United States seeds, shrubs and plants, 
forwarded literary and scientific news and 
pave useful advice to some of the leaders of 
the French Revolution. 

Mr. Jefferson landed in Virginia Novem- 



ber 18, 1789, having obtained a leave of 
absence from his post, and shortly after ac- 
cepted Washington's offer of the portfolio 
of the department of state in his cabinet. 
He entered upon the duties of his office in 
March, 1 79 r , and held it until January 1, 
1794, when he tendered his resignation. 
About this time he and Alexander Hamilton 
became decided and aggressive political op- 
ponents, Jefferson being in warm sympathy 
with the people in the French revolution 
and strongly democratic in his feelings, 
while Hamilton took the opposite side. In 
1796 Jefferson was elected vice-president of 
the United States. In 1800 he was elected 
to the presidency and was inaugurated 
March 4, 1801. During his administration, 
which lasted for eight years, he having been 
re-elected in 1804, he waged a successful 
war against the Tripolitan pirates; purchased 
Louisiana of Napoleon; reduced the public 
debt, and was the originator of many wise 
measures. Declining a nomination for a 
third term he returned to Monticello, where 
he died July 4, 1826, but a few hours before 
the death of his friend, John Adams. 

Mr. Jefferson was married January 1, 
1772, to Mrs. Martha Skelton, a young, 
beautiful, and wealthy widow, who died 
September 6, 1782, leaving three children, 
three more having died previous to her 
demise. 

CORNELIUS VANDERBILT.known as 
"Commodore" Vanderbilt, was the 
founder of what constitutes the present im- 
mense fortune of the Vanderbilt family. He 
was born May 27, 1794, at Port Richmond, 
Staten Island, Richmond county, New 
York, and we find him at sixteen years run- 
ning a small vessel between his home and 
New York City. The fortifications of Sta- 
ten and Long Islands were just in course of 



86 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



construction, and he carried the laborers 
from New York to the fortifications in his 
" perianger, " as it was called, in the day, 
and at night carried supplies to the fort on 
the Hudson. Later he removed to New 
York, where he added to his little fleet. At 
the age of twenty-three he was free from 
debt and was worth $9,000, and in 1817, 
with a partner he built the first steamboat 
that was run between New York and New 
Brunswick, New Jersey, and became her 
captain at a salary of $1,000 a year. The 
next year he took command of a larger and 
better boat and by 1824 he was in complete 
control of the Gibbon's Line, as it was 
called, which he had brought up to a point 
where it paid $40,000 a year. Commodore 
Yanderbilt acquired the ferry between New 
York and Hlizabethport, New Jersey, on a 
fourteen years' lease and conducted this on 
a paying basis. He severed his connections 
with Gibbons in 1829 and engaged in 
business alone and for twenty years he was 
the leading steamboat man in the country, 
building and operating steamboats on the 
Hudson River, Long Island Sound, on the 
Delaware River and the route to Boston, 
and he had the monopoly of trade on these 
routes. In 1850 he determined to broaden 
his field of operation and accordingly built 
the steamship Prometheus and sailed for 
the Isthmus of Darien, where he desired to 
make a personal investigation of the pros- 
pects of the American Atlantic and Pacific 
Ship Canal Company, in which he had pur- 
chased a controlling interest. Commodore 
Vanderbilt planned, as a result of this visit, 
a transit route from Greytown on the At- 
lantic coast to San Juan del Sud on the Pa- 
cific coast, which was a saving of 700 miles 
over the old route. In 1851 he placed three 
steamers on the Atlantic side and four on 
the Pacific side to accommodate the enor- 



mous traffic occasioned by the discovery of 
gold in California. The following year 
three more vessels were added to his fleet 
and a branch line established from New 
Orleans to Greytown. In 1853 the Com- 
modore sold out hisNicarauguaTransit Com- 
pany, which had netted him $1,000,000 
and built the renowned steam yacht, the 
"North Star." He continued in the ship- 
ping business nine years longer and accu- 
mulated some $10,000,000. In 1861 he 
presented to the government his magnifi- 
cent steamer " Yanderbilt, " which had cost 
him $800,000 and for which he received the 
thanks of congress. In 1844 he became 
interested in the railroad business which he 
followed in later years and became one of 
the greatest railroad magnates of his time. 
He founded the Yanderbilt University at a 
cost of $1,000,000. He died January 4. 
1877, leaving a fortune estimated at over 
$100,000,000 to his children. 



DANIEL BOONE was one of the most 
famous of the many American scouts, 
pioneers and hunters which the early settle- 
ment of the western states brought into 
prominence. Daniel Boone was born Feb- 
ruary 11, 1735, in Bucks county, Pennsyl- 
vania, but while yet a young man removed 
to North Carolina, where he was married. 
In 1769, with five companions, he pene- 
trated into the forests and wilds of Kentucky 
— then uninhabited by white men. He had 
frequent conflicts with the Indians and was 
captured by them but escaped and continued 
to hunt in and explore that region for over 
a year, when, in 1 77 1 , he returned to his 
home. In the summer of 1773, he removed 
with his own and five other families into 
what was then the wilderness of Kentucky, 
and to defend his colony against the savages, 
he built, in 1775, a Iort at Boonesborough. 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



37 



on ihe Kentucky river. This fort was at- 
tacked by the Indians several times in 1777, 
but they were repulsed. The following 
year, however, Boone was surprised and 
captured by them-. They took him to De- 
troit and treated him with leniency, but he 
soon escaped and returned to his fort which 
he defended with success against four hun- 
dred and fifty Indians in August, 1778. His 
son, Enoch Boone, was the first white male 
child born in the state of Kentucky. In 
1795 Daniel Boone removed with, his family 
to Missouri, locating about forty-five miles 
west of the present site of St. Louis, where 
he found fresh fields for his favorita pursuits 
— adventure, hunting, and pioneer life. His 
death occurred September 20, 1820. 



HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFEL- 
LOW, said to have been America's 
greatest " poet of the people," was born at 
Portland, Maine, February 27, 1807. He 
entered Bowdoin College at the age of four- 
teen, and graduated in 1825. During his 
college days he distinguished himself in mod- 
ern languages, and wrote several short 
poems, one of the best known of which was 
the "Hymn of the Moravian Nuns." After 
his graduation he entered the law office of 
his father, but the following year was offered 
the professorship of modern languages at 
Bowdoin, with the privilege of three vears 
study in Europe to perfect himself in French, 
Spanish, Italian and German. After the 
three years were passed he returned to the 
United States and entered upon his profes- 
sorship in 1S29. His first volume was a 
small essay on the "Moral and Devotional 
Poetry of Spain " in 1833. In 1835 he pub- 
lished some prose sketches of travel under 
the title of "Outre Mer, a Pilgrimage be- 
yond the Sea." In 1835 he was elected to 
the chair of modern languages and literature 



at Harvard University and spent a year in 
Denmark, Sweden and Switzerland, culti- 
vating a knowledge of early Scandinavian 
literature and entered upon his professor- 
ship in 1836. Mr. Longfellow published in 
1839 " Hyperion, a Romance, " and ' ' Voices 
of the Night, " and his first volume of original 
verse comprising the selected poems of 
twenty years work, procured him immediate 
recognition as a poet. " Ballads and other 
poems" appeared in 1842, the "Spanish 
Student" a drama in three acts, in 1843, 
"The Belfry of Bruges " in 1846, "Evan- 
geline, a Tale of Acadia," in 1847, which 
was considered his master piece. In 1845 
he published a large volume of the "Poets 
and Poetry of Europe," 1849 " Kavanagh, 
a Tale," ''The Seaside and Fireside" in 
1850, "The Golden Legend " in 1851, "The 
Song of Hiawatha " in 1855, "The Court- 
ship of Miles Standish " in 1858, " Tales of 
a Wayside Inn " in 1863; " Flower de Luce" 
in 1866;" "New England Tragedies" in 
1869; "The Divine Tragedy" in 1871; 
"Three Books of Song" in 1872; "The 
Hanging of the Crane " in 1874. He also 
published a masterly translation of Dante 
in 1867-70 and the " Morituri Salutamus," 
a poem read at the fiftieth anniversary ot 
his class at Bowdoin College. Prof. Long- 
fellow resigned his chair at Harvard Univer- 
sity in 1854, but continued to reside at Cam- 
bridge. Some of his poetical works have 
been translated into many languages, and 
their popularity rivals that of the best mod- 
ern English poetry. He died March 24, 
18S2, but has left an imperishable fame as 
one of the foremost of American poets. 



PETER COOPER was in three partic- 
ulars — as a capitalist and manufacturer, 
as an inventor, and as a philanthropist — 
connected intimately with some of the most 



:;,s 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



important and useful accessions to the in- 
dustrial arts of America, its progress in in- 
vention and the promotion of educational 
and benevolent institutions intended for the 
benefit of people at large. He was born 
in New York city, February 12, 1 79 1 . His 
life was one of labor and struggle, as it was 
with most of America's successful men. In 
early boyhood he commenced to help his 
''ather as a manufacturer of hats. He at- 
tended school only for half of each day for 
a single year, and beyond this his acquisi- 
tions were all his own. When seventeen 
years old he was placed with John Wood- 
ward to learn the trade of coach-making and 
served his apprenticeship so satisfactorily 
that his master oP-rred to set him up in busi- 
ness, but this he declined because of the 
debt and obligation it would involve. 

The foundation of Mr. Cooper's fortune 
was laid in the invention of an improvement 
in machines for shearing cloth. This was 
largely called into use during the war of 
1812 with England when all importations 
of cloth from that country were stopped. 
The machines lost their value, however, on 
the declaration of peace. Mr. Cooper then 
turned his shop into the manufacture of 
cabinet ware. He afterwards went into the 
grocery business in New York and finally he 
engaged in the manufacture of glue and isin- 
glass which he carried on for more than 
fifty years. In 1830 he erected iron works 
in Canton, near Baltimore. Subsequently 
he erected a rolling and a wire mill in the 
city of New York, in which he first success- 
fully applied anthracite to the puddling of 
iron. In these works, he was the first to 
roll wrought-iron beams for fire-proof build- 
ings. These works grew to be very exten- 
sive, including mines, blast furnaces, etc. 
While in Baltimore Mr. Cooper built in 
1830, after his own designs, the first loco- 



motive engine ever constructed on this con- 
tinent and it was successfully operated on 
the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad. He also 
took a great interest and invested large cap- 
ital in the extension of the electric telegraph, 
also in the laying of the first Atlantic cable; 
besides interesting himself largely in the 
New York state canals. But the most 
cherished object of Mr. Cooper's life was 
the establishment of an institution for the 
instruction of the industrial classes, which 
he carried out on a magnificent scale in New 
York city, where the "Cooper Union" 
ranks among the most important institu- 
tions. 

In May, 1876, the Independent party 
nominated Mr. Cooper for president of the 
United States, and at the election following 
he received nearly 100,000 votes. His 
death occurred April 4, 1S83. 



GENERAL ROBERT EDWARD LEE, 
one of the most conspicuous Confeder- 
ate generals during the Civil war, and one 
of the ablest military commanders of mod- 
ern times, was born at Stratford House. 
Westmoreland county, Virginia, January 19, 
1807. In 1825 he entered the West Point 
academy and was graduated second in his 
class in 1829, and attached to the army as 
second lieutenant of engineers. For a 
number of years he was thus engaged in en- 
gineering work, aiding in establishing the 
boundary line between Ohio and Michigan, 
and superintended various river and harbor 
improvements, becoming captain of engi- 
neers in 1838. He first saw field service in 
the Mexican war, and under General Scott 
performed valuable and efficient service. 
In that brilliant campaign he was conspicu- 
ous for professional ability as well as gallant 
and meritorious conduct, winning in quick 
succession the brevets of major, lieutenant- 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



39 



colonel, and colonel for his part in the bat- 
tles of Cerro Gordo, Contreras, Cherubusco, 
Chapultepec, and in the capture of the city 
Mexico. At the close of that war he re- 
sumed his engineering work in connection 
with defences along the Atlantic coast, and 
from 1852 to 1855 was superintendent of 
the Military Academy, a position which he 
gave up to become lieutenant-colonel of the 
Second Cavalry. For several years there- 
after he served on the Texas border, but 
happening to be near Washington at the 
time of John Brown's raid, October 17 to 
25, 1859, Colonel Lee was placed in com- 
mand of the Federal forces employed in its 
repression. He soon returned to his regi- 
ment in Texas where he remained the 
greater part of i860, and March 16, 1861, 
became colonel of his regiment by regular 
promotion. Three weeks later, April 25, he 
resigned upon the secession of Virginia, 
went at once to Richmond and tendered his 
services to the governor of that state, being 
by acclamation appointed commander-in- 
chief of its military and naval forces, with 
the rank of major-general. 

He at once set to work to organize and 
develop the defensive resources of his state 
and within a month directed the occupation 
in force of Manassas Junction. Meanwhile 
Virginia having entered the confederacy and 
Richmond become the capitol, Lee became 
one of the foremost of its military officers 
and was closely connected with Jefferson 
Davis in planning the moves of that tragic 
time. Lee participated in many of the 
hardest fought battles of the war among 
which were Fair Oaks, White Lake Swamps, 
Cold Harbor, and the Chickahominy, Ma- 
nassas, Cedar Run, Antietam, Fredericks- 
burg, Chancellorsville, Malvern Hill, Get- 
tysburg, the battles of the Wilderness cam- 
paign, all the campaigns about Richmond, 



Petersburg, Five Forks, and others. Lee's 
surrender at Appomatox brought the war to 
a close. It is said of General Lee that but 
few commanders in history have been so 
quick to detect the purposes of an opponent 
or so quick to act upon it. Never surpassed, 
if ever equaled, in the art of winning the 
passionate, personal love and admiration of 
his troops, he acquired and held an influ- 
ence over his army to the very last, founded 
upon a supreme trust in his judgment, pre- 
science and skill, coupled with his cool, 
stable, equable courage. A great writer has 
said of him: "As regards the proper meas- 
ure of General Lee's rank among the sol- 
diers of history, seeing what he wrought 
with such resources as he had, under all the 
disadvantages that ever attended his oper- 
ations, it is impossible to measure what he 
might have achieved in campaigns and bat- 
tles with resources at his own disposition 
equal to those against which he invariably 
contended." 

Left at the close of the war without es- 
tate or profession, he accepted the presi- 
dency of Washington College at Lexington, 
Virginia, where he died October 12, 1870. 



JOHN JAY, first chief-justice of the 
United States, was born in New York, 
December 12, 1745. He took up the study 
of law, graduated from King's College 
(Columbia College), and was admitted to 
the bar in 1768. He was chosen a member 
of the committee of New York citizens to 
protest against the enforcement by the 
British government of the Boston Port Bill, 
was elected to the Continental congress 
which met in 1774, and was author of the 
addresses to the people of Great Britian and 
of Canada adopted by that and the suc- 
ceeding congress. He was chosen to the 
provincial assembly of his own state, and 



w 



COMPENDIUM <>/■• BIOGRAPHY. 



resigned from the Continental congress to 
serve in that body, wrote most of its public 
papers, including the constitution of the new 
state, and was then made chief-justice. He 
was again chosen as a member of the Con- 
tinental congress in 1778, and became presi- 
dent of that body.. He was sent to Spain 
as minister in 1780, and his services there 
resulted in substantial and moral aid for the 
struggling colonists. Jay, Franklin, and 
Adams negotiated the treaty of peace with 
Great Britain in 1782, and Jay was ap- 
pointed secretary of foreign affairs in 1784, 
and held the position until the adoption of 
the Federal constitution. During this time 
he had contributed strong articles to the 
"Federalist" in favor of the adoption of 
the constitution, and was largely instru- 
mental in securing the ratification of that 
instrument by his state. He was appointed 
by Washington as first chief-justice of the 
United States in 1789. In this high capac- 
ity the great interstate and international 
questions that arose for immediate settle- 
ment came before him for treatment. 

In 1794, at a time when the people in 
gratitude for the aid that France had ex- 
tended to us, were clamoring for the privilege 
of going to the aid of that nation in her 
struggle with Great Britain and her own op- 
pressors, John Jay was sent to England as 
special envoy to negotiate a treaty with 
that power. The instrument known as 
"Jay's Treaty " was the result, and while 
in many of its features it favored our nation, 
yet the neutrality clause in it so angered the 
masses that it was denounced throughout 
the entire country, and John Jay was burned 
in effigy in the city of New York. The 
treaty was finally ratified by Washington, 
and approved, in August, 1795. Having 
been elected governor of his state for three 
consecutive terms, he then retired from 



active life, declining an appointment as 
chief-justice of the supreme court, made by 
John Adams and confirmed by the senate. 
He died in New York in 1S29. 



PHILLIP HENRY SHERIDAN was 
one of the greatest American cavalry 
generals. He was born March 6, 1831, at 
Somerset, Perry county, Ohio, and was ap- 
pointed to the United States Military Acad- 
emy at West Point, from which he graduat- 
ed and was assigned to the First Infantry as 
brevet second lieutenant July 1, 1853. 
After serving in Texas, on the Pacific coast, 
in Washington and Oregon territories until 
the fall of 1861, he was recalled to the 
states and assigned to the army of south- 
west Missouri as chief quartermaster from 
the duties of which he was soon relieved. 
After the battle of Pea Ridge, he was quar- 
termaster in the Corinth campaign, and on 
May 25 he was appointed colonel of the 
Second Michigan Cavalry. On July 1, in 
command of a cavalry brigade, he defeated 
a superior force of the enemy and was com- 
missioned brigadier-general of volunteers. 
General Sheridan was then transferred to 
the army of the Ohio, and commanded a 
division in the battle of Perrysville and also 
did good service at the battle of Murfrees- 
boro, where he was commissioned major- 
general of volunteers. He fought with 
great gallantry at Chickamauga, after which 
Rosecrans was succeeded by General Grant, 
under whom Sheridan fought the battle of 
Chattanooga and won additional renown. 
Upon the promotion of Grant to lieutenant- 
general, he applied for the transfer of Gen- 
eral Sheridan to the east, and appointed 
him chief of cavalry in the army of the 
Potomac. During the campaign of 1 S64 
the cavalry covered the front and flanks of 
the infantry until May 8, when it was witt> 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



drawn and General Sheridan started on a 
raid against the Confederate lines of com- 
munication with Richmond and on May 25 
he rejoined the army, having destroyed con- 
siderable of the confederate stores and de- 
feated their cavalry under General Stuart at 
Yellow Tavern. The outer line of defences 
around Richmond were taken, but the sec- 
ond line was too strong to be taken by as- 
sault, and accordingly Sheridan crossed the 
Chickahominy at Meadow Bridge, reaching 
James River May 14, and ther.ce by White 
House and Hanover Court House back to 
the army. The cavalry occupied Cold 
Harbor May 31, which they held until the 
arrival of the infantry. On General Sheri- 
dan's next raid he routed Wade Hampton's 
cavalry, and August 7 was assigned to the 
command of the Middle Military division, 
and during the campaign of the Shenan- 
doah Valley he performed the unheard of 
feat of " destroying an entire army." He 
was appointed brigadier-general of the reg- 
ular army and for his victory at Cedar Creek 
he was- promoted to the rank of major-gen- 
eral. General Sheridan started out Febru- 
ary 27, 1865, with ten thousand cavalry 
and destroyed the Virginia Central Railroad 
and the James River Canal and joined the 
army again at Petersburg March 27. He 
commanded at the battle of Five Forks, the 
decisive victory which compelled Lee to 
evacuate Petersburg. On April 9, Lee tried 
to break through Sheridan's dismounted 
command but when the General drew aside 
his cavalry and disclosed the deep lines of 
infantry the attempt was abandoned. Gen- 
eral Sheridan mounted his men and was about 
to charge when a white flag was flown at the 
head of Lee's column which betokened the 
surrender of the army. After the war Gen- 
eral Sheridan had command of the army of 
the southwest, of the gulf and the depart- 



ment of Missouri until he was appointed 
lieutenant-general and assigned to the di- 
vision of Missouri with headquarters at Chi- 
cago, and assumed supreme command of 
the army November 1, 1883, which post he 
held until his death, Augusts, 1888. 



PHINEAS T. BARNUM, the greatest 
showman the world has ever seen, was 
born at Danbury, Connecticut, July 5, 18 10. 
At the age of eighteen years he began busi- 
ness on his own account. He opened a re- 
tail fruit and confectionery house, including 
a barrel of ale, in one part of an old car- 
riage house. He spent fifty dollars in fitting 
up the store and the stock cost him seventy 
dollars. Three years later he put in a full 
stock, such as is generally carried in a 
country store, and the same year he started 
a Democratic newspaper, known as the 
"Herald of Freedom." He soon found 
himself in jail under a sixty days' sentence 
for libel. During the winter of 1834-5 he 
went to New York and began soliciting busi- 
ness for several Chatham street houses. In 

1835 ne embarked in the show business at 
Niblo's Garden, having purchased the cele- 
brated " Joice Heth" for one thousand dol- 
lars. He afterward engaged the celebrated 
athlete, Sig. Vivalia, and Barnum made his 
' ' first appearance on any stage, " acting as a 
"super" to Sig. Vivalia on his opening 
night. He became ticket seller, secretary 
and treasurer of Aaron Turner's circus in 

1836 and traveled with it about the country. 
His next venture was the purchase of a 
steamboat on the Mississippi, and engaged 
a theatrical company to show in the princi- 
pal towns along that river. In 1840 he 
opened Vaux Hall Garden, New York, with 
variety performances, and introduced the 
celebrated jig dancer, John Diamond, to the 
public. The next vear he auit the show 



42 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



business and settled down in New York as 
agent of Sear's Pictorial Illustration of the 
Bible, but a few months later again leased 
Vaux Hall. In September of the same year 
he again left the business, and became 
• • puff " writer for the Bowery Amphitheater. 
In December he bought the Scudder Museum, 
and a year later introduced the celebrated 
Tom Thumb to the world, taking him to 
England in 1844, and remaining there three 
years. He then returned to New York, and 
in 1849, through James Hall Wilson, he en- 
gaged the "Swedish Nightingale," Jenny 
Lind, to come to this country and make a 
tour under his management. He also had 
sent the Swiss Bell Ringers to America in 
1844. He became owner of the Baltimore 
Museum and the Lyceum and Museum at 
Philadelphia. In 1850 he brought a dozen 
elephants from Ceylon to make a tour of this 
country, and in 185 1 sent the " Bateman 
Children" to London. During 185 1 and 
1852 he traveled as a temperance lecturer, 
and became president of a bank at Pequon- 
aock, Connecticut. In 1852 he started a 
weekly pictorial paper known as the " Illus- 
trated News." In 1865 his Museum was 
destroyed by fire, and he immediately leased 
the Winter Garden Theatre, where he played 
his company until he opened his own 
Museum. This was destroyed by fire in 
1868, and he then purchased an interest in 
the George Wood Museum. 

After dipping into politics to some ex- 
tent, he began his career as a really great 
showman in 1871. Three years later he 
erected an immense circular building in New 
York, in which he produced his panoramas. 
He has frequently appeared as a lecturer, 
some times on temperance, and some times 
on other topics, among which were "Hum- 
bugs of the World," "Struggles and 
Triumphs," etc. He was owner of the im- 



mense menagerie and circus known as the 
"Greatest Show on Earth," and his fame 
extended throughout Europe and America. 
He died in 1891. 



JAMES MADISON, the fourth president 
of the United States, 1809-17, was 
born at Port Conway, Prince George coun- 
ty, Virginia, March 16, 1751. He was the 
son of a wealthy planter, who lived on a fine 
estate called ' ' Montpelier," which was but 
twenty-five miles from Monticello, the home 
of Thomas Jefferson. Mr. Madison was the 
eldest of a family of seven children, all of 
whom attained maturity. He received his 
early education at home under a private 
tutor, and consecrated himself with unusual 
vigor to study. At a very early age he was 
a proficient scholar in Latin, Greek, French 
and Spanish, and in 1769 he entered Prince- 
ton College, New Jersey. He graduated in 
1 77 1, but remained for several months after 
his graduation to pursue a course of study 
under the guidance of Dr. Witherspoon. 
He permanently injured his health at this 
time and returned to Virginia in 1772, and 
for two years he was immersed in the study 
of law, and at the same time made extend- 
ed researches in theology, general literature, 
and philosophical studies. He then directed 
his full attention to the impending struggle 
of the colonies for independence, and also 
took a prominent part in the religious con- 
troversy at that time regarding so called 
persecution of other religious denominations 
by the Church of England. Mr. Madison 
was elected to the Virginia assembly in 1776 
and in November, 1777, he was chosen 
a member of the council of state. He took 
his seat in the continental congress in 
March, 1780. He was made chairman of 
the committee on foreign relations, and 
drafted an able memoranda for the use of 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



43 



the American ministers to the French and 
Spanish governments, that established the 
claims of the republic to the territories be- 
tween the Alleghany Mountains and the 
Mississippi River. He acted as chairman of 
the ways and means committee in 1783 and 
as a member of the Virginia legislature in 
1784-86 he rendered important services to 
the state. Mr. Madison represented Vir- 
giana in the national constitutional conven- 
tion at Philadelphia in 17S7, and was one of 
the chief framers of the constitution. He 
was a member of the first four congresses, 
1789-97, and gradually became identified 
with the anti-federalist or republican party 
of which he eventually became the leader. 
He remained in private life during the ad- 
ministration of John Adams, and was secre- 
tary of state under President Jefferson. Mr. 
Madison administered the affairs of that 
post with such great ability that he was the 
natural successor of the chief magistrate 
and was chosen president by an electoral 
vote of 122 to 53. He was inaugurated 
March 4, 1S09, at that critical period in our 
history when the feelings of the people were 
embittered with those of England, and his 
first term was passed in diplomatic quarrels, 
which finally resulted in the declaration of 
war, June 18, 1812. In the autumn of that 
year President Madison was re-elected by a 
vote of 128 to 89, and conducted the war 
for three years with varying success and 
defeat in Canada, by glorious victories at 
sea, and by the battle of New Orleans that 
was fought after the treaty of peace had 
been signed at Ghent, December 24, 1814. 
During this war the national capitol at 
Washington was burned, and many valuable 
papers were destroyed, but the declaration 
of independence was saved to the country 
by the bravery and courage of Mr. Madi- i 
son's illustrious wife. A commercial treaty I 



was negotiated with Great Britain in 181 5, 
and in April, 18 16, a national bank was in- 
corporated by congress. Mr. Madison was 
succeeded, March 4, 1817, by James Monroe, 
and retired into private life on his estate at 
Montpelier, where he died June 28, 1836. 



FREDERICK DOUGLASS, a noted 
American character, was a protege of 
the great abolitionist, William Lloyd Garri- 
son, by whom he was aided in gaining his 
education. Mr. Douglass was born in Tuck- 
ahoe county, Maryland, in February, 1817, 
his mother being a negro woman and his 
father a white man. He was born in slav- 
ery and belonged to a man by the name of 
Lloyd, under which name he went until he 
ran away from his master and changed it to 
Douglass. At the age of ten years he was 
sent to Baltimore where he learned to read 
and write, and later his owner allowed hitn 
to hire out his own time for three dollars a 
week in a shipyard. In September, 1838, 
he fled from Baltimore and made his way to 
New York, and from thence went to New 
Bedford, Massachusetts. Here he was mar- 
ried and supported himself and family by 
working at the wharves and in various work- 
shops. In the summer of 1841 he attended 
an anti-slavery convention at Nantucket, 
and made a speech which was so well re- 
ceived that he was offered the agency of the 
Massachusetts Anti-slavery Society. In this 
capacity he traveled through the New En- 
gland states, and about the same time he 
published his first book called "Narrative 
of my Experience in Slavery." Mr. Doug- 
lass went to England in 1845 an ^ lectured 
on slavery to large and enthusiastic audi- 
ences in all the large towns of the country, 
and his friends made up a purse of seven 
hundred and fifty dollars and purchased his 
freedom in due form of law. 



14 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



Mr. Douglass applied himself to the de- 
livery of lyceum lectures after the abolition 
of slavery, and in i S70 he became the editor 
of the '• New National Era " in Washington. 
In 1 87 1 he was appointed assistant secretary 
of the commission to San I > >mingo and on 
his return he was appointed one of the ter- 
ritorial council for the District of Colorado 
i. President Grant. He was elected presi- 
dential elector-at-large for the state of New 
York and was appointed to carry the elect- 
oral Vote to Washington. He was also 
United States marshal for the District of 
Columbia in 1876, and latei was recorder 
of deeds for the same, from which position 
as removed by President Cleveland in 
In the fall of that year he \ 
England to inform the friends that lie had 
made while there, of the progress of the 
colored race in America, and on his return 
he was appointed minister to Hayti, by 
President Harrison in 1889. Hiscareeras 
a benefactor of his race was closed by his 
death in February, 1S95. near Washington. 



WILLIAM CULLEN BRYANT.— The 
ear for rhythm and the talent for 
graceful expression are the gifts of nature, 
and tluy were plentifully endowed on the 
above named poet. The principal charac- 
teristic of his poetry is the thoughtfulness 
and intellectual process by which his ideas 
ripened in his mind, as all his poems are 
bright, clear and sweet. Mr. Bryant was 
born November 3. 1794, at Cummington, 
Hampshire county, Massachusetts, and was 
educated at Williams College, from whi< h 
he graduated, having entered it in 1 8 10. 
II I »6k Up the study of law, and in 1815 
was admitted to the bar, but after practicing 
successfully for ten years at Plainfield and 
Great Barrington, he removed to New York 
in [825, The following year he became 



the editor of the "Evening Post," which 
he edited until his death, and under his di- 
rection this paper maintained, through a 
long series of years, a high standing by the 
boldness of its protests against slavery be- 
fore the war, by its vigorous support of the 
government during the war, and by the 
fidelity and ability of its advocacy of the 
Democratic freedom in trade. Mr. Bry- 
ant visited Europe in 1834, 1.^45, 1849 and 
and presented to the literary world 
the fruit of his travels in the series of "Let- 
ters of a Traveler," and "Letters from 
Spain and Other Countries." In the world 
of literature he is known chiefly as a poet, 
and here Mr. Bryant's name is illustrious. 
both at home and abroad. He contributed 
verses to the "Country Gazette " before he 
was ten years of age, and at the age of nine- 
teen he wrote " Thanatopsis, " the most im- 
pressive and widely known of his poems. 
The later outgrowth of his genius was his 
translation of Homer's "Iliad" in l8jtO 
and the "Odyssey" in 1871. He also 
made several speeches and addresses which 
have been collected in a comprehensn 
ume called "Orations and Addresses." Ib- 
was honored in many ways by his fellow 
citizens, who delighted to pay tributes of 
respect to his literary eminence, th<- breadth 
of his public spirit, the faithfulness of his 
service, and the worth of his private char- 
acter. Mr. Bryant died in New York City 
June \2, 1S78. 



WILLIAM HENRY SEWARD, the 
secretary of state during one of the 
most critical times in the history of our 
country, and the ri^'ht hand man of 1 
dent Lincoln, ranks among the greatest 
statesmen America has produced. Mr 
Seward was born May t6, 1801, at Florida. 
Orange county, New York, and with such 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRATHr. 



47 



facilities as the place afforded he fitted him- 
self for a college course. He attended 
Union College at Schenectady, New York, 
at the age of fifteen, and took his degree in 
the regular course, with signs of promise in 
1820, after which he diligently addressed 
himself to the study of law under competent 
instructors, and started in the practice of 
his profession in 1823. 

Mr. Seward entered the political arena 
and in 1828 we find him presiding over a 
convention in New York, its purpose being 
the nomination of John Quincy Adams for a 
second term. He was married in 1824 and 
in 1830 was elected to the state senate. 
From 1S38 to 1842 he was governor of the 
state of New YoTk. Mr. Seward's next im- 
portant position was that of United States 
senator from New York. 

W. H. Seward was chosen by President 
Lincoln to fill the important office of the 
secretary of state, and by his firmness and 
diplomacy in the face of difficulties, he aided 
in piloting the Union through that period of 
strife, and won an everlasting fame. This 
great statesman died at Auburn, New York, 
October IO, 1872, in the seventy-second 
year of his eventful life. 



JOSEPH JEFFERSON, a name as dear 
as it is familiar to the theater-going 
world in America, suggests first of all a fun- 
loving, drink-ioving, mellow voiced, good- 
natured Dutchman, and the name of "Rip 
Van Winkle " suggests the pleasant features 
of Joe Jefferson, so intimately are play and 
player associated in the minds of those who 
have had the good fortune to shed tears of 
laughter and sympathy as a tribute to the 
greatness of his art. Joseph Jefferson was 
born in Philadelphia, February 20, 1829. 
His genius was an inheritance, if there be 

such, as his great-grandfather, Thomas 
3 



Jefferson, was a manager and actor in Eng 
land. His grandfather, Joseph Jefferson, 
was the most popular comedian of the New 
York stage in his time, and his father, Jos- 
eph Jefferson, the second, was a good actor 
also, but the third Joseph Jefferson out- 
shone them all. 

At the age of three years Joseph Jeffer- 
son came on the stage as the child in "Pi- 
zarro," and his training was upon the stage 
from childhood. Later on he lived and 
acted in Chicago, Mobile, and Texas. After 
repeated misfortunes he returned to New 
Orleans from Texas, and his brother-in-law, 
Charles Burke, gave him money to reach 
Philadelphia, where he joined the Burton 
theater company. Here his genius soon as- 
serted itself, and his future became promis- 
ing and brilliant. His engagements through- 
out the United States and Australia were 
generally successful, and when he went to 
England in 1865 Mr. Boucicault consented 
to make some important changes in his 
dramatization of Irving's story of Rip Van 
Winkle, and Mr. Jefferson at once placed 
it in the front rank as a comedy. He made 
a fortune out of it, and played nothing else 
for many years. In later years, however, 
Mr. Jefferson acquitted himself of the charge 
of being a one-part actor, and the parts of 
"Bob Acres," "Caleb Plummer" and 
"Golightly " all testify to the versatility of 
his genius. 

GEORGE BRINTON McCLELLAN, 
a noted American general, was born 
in Philadelphia, December 3, 1826. He 
graduated from the University of Pennsyl- 
vania, and in 1846 from West Point, and 
was breveted second lieutenant of engineers. 
He was with Scott in the Mexican war, 
taking part in all the engagements from 
Vera Cruz to the final capture of the Mexi- 






(8 



COMI'J-.XDUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



can capital, and was breveted first lieuten- 
ant and captain for gallantry displayed on 
various occasions. In i S 57 he resigned his 
commission and accepted the position of 
chiel engineer in the construction of the 
Illinois Central Railroad, and became presi- 
dent of the St. Louis & Cincinnati Railroad 
Company. He was commissioned major- 
general by the state of Ohio in 1861, 
placed in command of the department of 
the Ohio, and organized the first volunteers 
called for from that state. In May he was 
appointed major-general in the United 
States army, and ordered to disperse the 
confederates overrunning West Virginia. 
Hi accomplished this task promptly, and 
received the thanks of congress. After the 
first disaster at Bull Run he was placed 
in command of the department of Wash- 
ington, and a few weeks later of the 
Army of the Potomac. Upon retirement 
of General Scott the command of the en- 
tire United States army devolved upon Mc- 
Clellan, but he was relieved of it within a 
few months. In March, 1862, after elabor- 
ate preparation, he moved upon Manassas, 
only to find it deserted by the Confederate 
army, which had been withdrawn to im- 
pregnable defenses prepared nearer Rich- 
mond. He then embarked his armies for 
Fortress Monroe and after a long delay at 
Vorktown, began the disastrous Peninsular 
campaign, which resulted in the Army of the 
Potomac being cooped up on the James 
River below Richmond. His forces were 
then railed to the support of General Pope, 
near Washington, and be was left without an 
army. After Pope's defeat McClellan was 
placed in command of the troops for the de- 
fenseof the capital, and after a thorough or- 
ganization he followed Lee into Maryland 
and the battles of Antietam and South Moun- 
tain ensued. The delay which followed 



caused general dissatisfaction, and he was re- 
! of his command, and retired from active 
service. 

In 1SG4 McClellan was nominated for 
the presidency by the Democrats, and over- 
whelmingly defeated by Lincoln, three 
states only casting their electoral votes for 
McClellan. On election day he resigned 
his commission and a few months later went 
to Europe where he spent several years. 
He wrote a number of military text- books 
and reports. His death occurred October 
29, 1885. 

SAMUEL J. TILDEN.— Among the great 
statesmen whose names adorn the pages 
of American history may be found that of 
the subject of this sketch. Known as a 
lawyer of highest ability, his greatest claim 
to immortality will ever lie in his successful 
battle against the corrupt rings of his native 
state and the elevation of the standard of 
official life. 

Samuel J. Tilden was born in New Leb- 
anon, New York, February 9, 1S14. He 
pursued his academic studies at Yale Col- 
lege and the University of New York, tak- 
ing the course of law at the latter. He 
was admitted to the bar in 1841. His rare 
ability as a thinker and writer upon public- 
topics attracted the attention of President 
V;ui Huren, of whose policy and adminis- 
tration he became an active and efficient 
champion. He made for himself a high 
place in his profession and amassed quite a 
fortune as the result of his industry and 
judgment During the days of his greatest 
professional labor he was ever one of the 
leaders and trusted counsellors of the Demo- 
cratic party. He was a member of the 
conventions to revise the state constitution, 
both in [846 and 1S67, and served two 
terms in the lower branch of the state leg- 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



49 



islature. He was one of the controlling 
spirits in the overthrow of the notorious 
"Tweed ring" and the reformation of the 
government of the city of New York. In 
1874 he was elected governor of the state 
of New York. While in this position he 
assailed corruption in high places, success- 
fully battling with the iniquitous "canal 
ring " and crushed its sway over all depart- 
ments of the government. Recognizing his 
character and executive ability Mr. Tilden 
was nominated for president by the na- 
tional Democratic convention in 1876. At 
the election he received a much larger popu- 
lar vote than his opponent, and 184 uncon- 
tested electoral votes. There being some 
electoral votes contested, a commission ap- 
pointed by congress decided in favor of the 
Republican electors and Mr. Hayes, the can- 
didate of that party was declared elected. 
In 1880, the Democratic party, feeling that 
Mr. Tilden had been lawfully elected to the 
presidency tendered the nomination for the 
same office to Mr. Tilden, but he declined, 
retiring from all public functions, owing to 
failing health. He died August 4, 1886. 
By will he bequeathed several millions of 
dollars toward the founding of public libra- 
ries in New York City, Yonkers, etc. 



NOAH WEBSTER.— As a scholar, law- 
yer, author and journalist, there is no 
one who stands on a higher plane, or whose 
reputation is better established than the 
honored gentleman whose name heads this 
sketch. He was a native of West Hartford, 
Connecticut, and was born October 17, 
1758. He came of an old New England 
family, his mother being a descendant of 
Governor William Bradford, of the Ply- 
mouth colony. After acquiring a solid edu- 
cation in early life Dr. Webster entered 
Yale College, from which he graduated in 



1778. For a while he taught school in 
Hartford, at the same time studying law, 
and was admitted to the bar in 1781. He 
taught a classical school at Goshen, Orange 
county, New York, in 1782-83, and while 
there prepared his spelling book, grammar 
and reader, which was issued under the title 
of "A Grammatical Institute of the English 
Language," in three parts, — so successful a 
work that up to 1876 something like forty 
million of the spelling books had been 
sold. In 1786 he delivered a course of lec- 
tures on the English language in the seaboard 
cities and the following year taught an 
academy at Philadelphia. From December 
17, 1787, until November, 1788, he edited 
the "American Magazine, "a periodical that 
proved unsuccessful. In 1789-93 he prac- 
ticed law in Hartford having in the former 
year married the daughter of William Green- 
leaf, of Boston. He returned to New York 
and November, 1793, founded a daily paper, 
the "Minerva," to which was soon added a 
semi-weekly edition under the name of the 
" Herald." The former is still in existence 
under the name of the "Commercial Adver- 
tiser." In this paper, over the signature of 
"Curtius," he published a lengthy and schol- 
arly defense of "John Jay's treaty." 

In 1798, Dr. Webster moved to New 
Haven and in 1807 commenced the prepar- 
ation of his great work, the ' ' American Dic- 
tionary of the English Language," which 
was not completed and published until 1828. 
He made his home in Amherst, Massachu- 
setts, for the ten years succeeding 181 2, and 
was instrumental in the establishment of 
Amherst College, of which institution he was 
the first president of the board of trustees. 
During 1824-5 ne resided in Europe, pursu- 
ing his philological studies in Paris. He 
completed his dictionary from the libraries 
of Cambridge University in 1825, and de- 



-> 



MPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



voted his leisure (or the remainder of his 
life to the revision of that and his school 
books. 

Dr. Webster was a member of the legis- 
latures of both Connecticut and Massachu- 
setts, was judge of one of the courts of the 
former state and was identified with nearly 
all the literary and scientific societies in the 
neighborhood of Amherst College. He died 
in New Haven, May 28, 1S43. 

Among the more prominent works ema- 
nating from the fecund pen of Dr. Noah 
Webster besides those mentioned above are 
the following: "Sketches of American 
Policy.' " Winthrop's Journal ," "A Brief 
History of Epidemics," " Rights of Neutral 
ns in time of War," " A Philosophical 
and Practical Grammar of the English Lan- 
guage," "Dissertations on the Ei 
Language, "A Collection of Es- 
"The Revolution in France," "Political 
Progress of Britain," "Origin, History, and 
Connection of the Languages of Western 
Asia and of Europe," and many others. 



WILLIAM LLOYD GARRISON, the 
great anti-slavery pioneer and lead< r, 
was born in Newburyport, Massachusetts, 
December ij, 1S04. He was apprenticed 
to the printing business, and in [828 was in- 
duced to take charge of the "Journal of the 
Times" at Bennington, Vermont. While 
supporting John Quincy Adams for the presi- 
dency he took occasion in that paper to give 
expression of his views on slavery. These 
articles attracted notice, and a Quaker 
named Lundy, editor of the "Genius of 
Emancipation," published in Baltimore, in- 
duced him to enter a partnership with him 
(or the conduct of his paper. It soon 
transpired that the views of the partners 
were not in harmony, Lundy favoring grad- 
ual emancipation, while Garrison favored 



immediate freedom. In 1850 Mr. Garrison 
was thrown into prison for libel, not being 
able to pay a fine of fifty dollars and 1 
In his cell he wrote a number of poems 
which stirred the entire north, and a mer- 
chant, Mr. Tappan, of New York, paid his 
fine and liberated him, after seven weeks of 
confinement. He at once began a lecture 
tour of the northern cities, denouncing 
slavery as a sin before God, and demanding 
its immediate abolition in the name of re- 
ligion and humanity. He opposed the col- 
onization scheme of President Monroe and 
other leaders, and declared the right of 
every slave to immediate freedom. 

In 1831 he formed a partnership with 
Isaac Knapp. and began the publication oi 
the "Liberator" at Boston. The " imme- 
abolition " idea began to gather powei 
in the north, while the south became 
alarmed at the bold utterance of this jour- 
nal. The mayor of Boston was besought 
by southern influence to interfere, and upon 
investigation, reported upon the insignifi- 
cance, obscurity, and poverty of the editor 
and his staff, which report was widely 
published throughout the country. Re- 
wards were offered by the southern states 
for his arrest and conviction. Later Garri- 
son brought from England, where an eman- 
cipation measure had just been passed, 
some of the great advocates to work for the 
cause in this country. In 1 S3 5 a mob 
broke into his office, broke up a meeting oi 
women, dragged Garrison through the street 
with a rope around his body, and his life 
was saved only by the interference of the 
police, who lodged him in jail. Garrison 
declined to sit in the World's Anti-Slaverv 
convention at London in 1S40, because 
that body had refused women representa- 
tion. He opposed the formation of a po- 
litical party with emancipation as its basis. 






COMPEXDIL'M OF BIOGRAPHT. 



51 



He favored a dissolution of the union, and 
declared the constitution which bound the 
free states to the slave states " A covenant 
with death and an agreement with hell. " 
In 1S43 he became president of the Amer- 
ican Anti-Slavery society, which position he 
held until 1S65, when slavery was no more. 
During all this time the " Liberator " had 
continued to promulgate anti-slavery doc- 
trines, but in 1865 Garrison resigned his 
position, and declared his work was com- 
pleted. He died May 24. 1S79. 



JOHN" BROWN' ;•■ Brown of Ossawato- 
mie"), a noted character in American 
history, wasbornatTorrington. Connecticut, 
May 9, 1800. In his childhood he removed 
to Ohio, where he learned the tanner's 
trade. He married there, and in 1S55 set- 
tled in Kansas. He lived at the village of 

vatomie in that state, and there began 
his fi-^ht against slavery. He advocated im- 
mediate emancipation, and held that the 

es of the slave states merely waited 
for a leader in an insurrection that would re- 
sult in their freedom. He attended the 
convention called at Chatham, Canada, in 
and was the leading spirit in organiz- 
ing a raid upon the United States arsenal at 
Harper's Ferry. Virginia. His plans were 
well laid, and carried out in great secrecy. 
He rented a farm house near Harper's I 
in the summer of 1859, and on October 

■ >f that year, with about twenty follow- 
ers, he surprised and captured the United 
States arsenal, with all its supplies and 
arms. To his surprise, the negroes did not 
come to his support, and the next day he 

Utacked by the Virginia state militia, 
wounded and captured. He was tried in 
the courts of the state, convicted, and was 
hanged at Charlestown, December 2, 1S59. 
The raid and its results had a tremendous 



effect, and hastened the culmination of the 
troubles between the north and south. The 
south had the advantage in discussing this 
event, claiming that the sentiment which 
inspired this act of violence was shared by 
the anti-slavery element of the country. 



EDWIN BOOTH had no peer upon the 
American stage during his long career 
as a star actor. He was the son of a famous 
actor, Junius Brutus Booth, and was born 
in 1S33 at his father's home at Belair, near 
Baltimore. At the age of sixteen he made his 
first appearance on the stage, at the Boston 
Museum, in a minor part in "Richard III." 
It was while playing in California in 1S51 
that an eminent critic called general atten- 
tion to the young actor's unusual talent. 
However, it was not until 1S63, at the great 
Shakspearian revival at the Winter Garden 
Theatre, New York, that the brilliancy ol 
his career began. His Hamlet held the 
boards for 100 nights in succession, and 
from that time forth Booth's reputation was 
established. In 1S6S he opened his own 
theatre (Booth's Theater in New York. 
Mr. Booth never succeeded as a manager, 
however, but as an actor he was undoubted- 
ly the most popular man on the American 
stage, and perhaps the most eminent one in 
the world. In England he also won the 
greatest applause. 

Mr. Booth's work was confined mostly 
to Shakspearean roles, and his art was 
characterized by intellectual acuteness. 
fervor, and poetic feeling. His Hamlet, 
Richard II. Richard III, and Richelieu gave 
play to his greatest powers. In 
when his brother, John Wilkes Booth, 
enacted his great crime, Edwin Booth re- 
solved to retire from the stage, but waspur- 
suaded to reconsider that decision. The 
odium did not in anv way attach to the 



co.MPENDICM OF BIOGRArUV. 



yreat actor, and his popularity was not 
affected. In all his work Mr. Booth clung 
closely to the legitimate and the traditional 
in drama, making no experiments, and offer- 
ing little encouragement to new dramatic 
authors. His death occurred in New York, 
June 7, 1894. 



JOSEPH HOOKER, a noted American 
officer, was born at Hadley, Massachu- 
setts. November 13, 18 14. He graduated 
from West Point Military Academy in 1837, 
and was appointed lieutenant of artillery. 
He served in Florida in the Seminole war, 
and in garrison until the outbreak of the 
Mexican war. During the latter he saw 
service as a staff officer and was breveted 
captain, major and lieutenant-colonel for 
gallantry at Monterey, National Bridge and 
Chapultepec. Resigning his commission in 
1 833 he took up farming in California, which 
he followed until 1 861. During this time 
he acted as superintendent of military roads 
in Oregon. At the outbreak of the Rebel- 
lion Hooker tendered his services to the 
government, and. May 17, 1861, was ap- 
pointed brigadier-general of volunteers. He 
served in the defence of Washington and on 
the lower Potomac until his appointment to 
the command of a division in the Third 
Corps, in March, 1862. For gallant con- 
duct at the siege of Yorktown and in the 
battles of Williamsburg, Fair Oaks, Fra- 
.zier's Farm and Malvern Hill he was made 
major-general. At the head of his division 
he participated in the battles of Manassas 
and Chantillv. September 6. 1862, he was 
placed at the head of the First Corps, and 
in the battles of South Mountain and An- 
tietam acted with his usual gallantry, being 
wounded in the latter engagement. On re- 
joining the army in November he was made 
brigadier-general in the regular army. On 



General Burnside attaining the command of 
the Army of the Potomac General Hooker 
was placed in command of the center grand 
division, consisting of the Second and Fifth 
Corps. At the head of these gallant men 
he participated in the battle of Fred- 
ericksburg, December 13, 1S62. In Janu- 
ary, 1863, General Hooker assumed com- 
mand of the Army of the Potomac, and in 
May following fought the battle of Chan- 
cellorsville. At the time of the invasion of 
Pennsylvania, owing to a dispute with Gen- 
eral Halleck, Hooker requested to be re- 
lieved of his command, and June 28 was 
succeeded by George G. Meade. In Sep- 
tember, 1863, General Hooker was given 
command of the Twentieth Corps and trans- 
ferred to the Army of the Cumberland, and 
distinguished himself at the battles of Look- 
out Mountain, Missionary Ridge, and Ring- 
gold. In the Atlanta campaign he saw 
almost daily service and merited his well- 
known nickname of "Fighting Joe." July 
30, 1S64, at his own request, he was re- 
lieved of his command. He subsequently 
was in command of several military depart- 
ments in the north, and in October, 1868, 
was retired with the full rank of major-gen- 
eral. He died October 31, 1879. 



JAY GOULD, one of the greatest finan- 
ciers that the world has ever produced, 
was born May 27, 1836, at Roxbury, Dela- 
ware county, New York. He spent his earls- 
years on his father's farm and at the age of 
fourteen entered Hobart Academy, New 
York, and kept books for the village black- 
smith. He acquired a taste for mathematics 
and surveying and on leaving school found 
employment in making the surveyor's map 
of Ulster county. He surveyed very exten- 
sively in the state and accumulated five thou- 
sand dollars as the fruits of his labor. He 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



53 



was then stricken with typhoid (ever but re- 
covered and made the acquaintance of one 
Zadock Pratt, who sent him into the west- 
ern part of the state to locate a site for a 
tannery. He chose a fine hemlock grove, 
built a sawmill and blacksmith shop and 
was soon doing a large lumber business with 
Mr. Pratt. Mr. Gould soon secured control 
of the entire plant, which he sold out just 
before the panic of 1857 and in this year he 
became the largest stockholderintheStrouds- 
burg, Pennsylvania, bank. Shortly after the 
crisis he bought the bonds of the Rutland 
& Washington Railroad at ten cents on the 
dollar, and put all his money into railroad 
securities. For a long time he conducted 
this road which he consolidated with the 
Rensselaer & Saratoga Railroad. In 1859 
he removed to New York and became a 
heavy investor in Erie Railroad stocks, en- 
tered that company and was president until 
its reorganization in 1872. In December, 
1880, Mr. Gould was in control of ten thou- 
sand miles of railroad. In 1887 he pur- 
chased the controlling interest in the St. 
Louis & San Francisco Railroad Co., and 
was a joint owner with the Atchison, Topeka 
& Santa Fe Railroad Co. of the western 
portion of the Southern Pacific line. Other 
lines soon came under his control, aggregat- 
ing thousand of miles, and he soon was rec- 
ognized as one of the world's greatest rail- 
road magnates. He continued to hold his 
place as one of the master financiers of the 
century until the time of his death which 
occurred December 2, 1892. 



THOMAS HART BENTON, a very 
prominent United States senator and 
statesman, was born at Hillsborough, North 
Carolina, March 14, 1782. He removed to 
Tennessee in early life, studied law, and be- 
gan to practice at Nashville about 18 10. 



During the war of 1812—1815 he served as 
colonel of a Tennessee regiment under Gen- 
eral Andrew Jackson. In 181 5 he removed 
to St. Louis, Missouri, and in 1820 was 
chosen United States senator for that state. 
Having been re-elected in 1826, he sup- 
ported President Jackson in his opposition 
to the United States bank and advocated a 
gold and silver currency, thus gaining the 
name of " Old Bullion," by which he was 
familiarly known. For many years he was 
the most prominent man in Missouri, and 
took rank among the greatest statesmen of 
his day. He was a member of the senate 
for thirty years and opposed the extreme 
states' rights policy of John C. Calhoun. 
In 1852 he was elected to the house of rep- 
resentatives in which he opposed the repeal 
of the Missouri compromise. He was op- 
posed by a powerful party of States' Rights 
Democrats in Missouri, who defeated him as a 
candidate for governor of that state in 1856. 
Colonel Benton published a considerable 
work in two volumes in 1854-56, entitled 
"Thirty Years' View, or a History of the 
Working of the American Government for 
Thirty Years, 1820-50." He died April 10, 
1858. 

STEPHEN ARNOLD DOUGLAS.— One 
of the most prominent figures in politic- 
al circles during the intensely exciting days 
that preceded the war, and a leader of the 
Union branch of the Democratic party was 
the gentleman whose name heads this 
sketch. 

He was born at Brandon, Rutland coun- 
ty, Vermont, April 23, 18 13, of poor but 
respectable parentage. His father, a prac- 
ticing physician, died while our subject was 
but an infant, and his mother, with two 
small children and but small means, could 
give him but the rudiments of an education. 



54 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGEAPHV 



At the age of fifteen youngr Douglas engaged 
at work in the cabinet making business to 
raise funds to carry him through college. 
After a few years of labor he was enabled to 
pursue an academical course, first at Bran- 
don, and later at Canandaicua, New York. 
In the latter place he remained until 1833, 
taking up the study of law. Belore he was 
twenty, however, his tunas running lew, he 
abandoned all further attempts at educa- 
tion, determining to enter at once the battle 
of life. After some wanderings tnrough the 
western states he took ud his residence at 
Jacksonville, Illinois, where, after teaching 
school for three months, he was admitted to 
the bar, and opened an office in 1834. 
Within a year from that time, so rapidly had 
he risen in his profession, he was chosen 
attorney genera! of the state, and warmly 
espoused the piinciples of the Democratic 
party. He soon became one of the most 
popular orators in Illinois. It was at this 
time he gained the name of the " Little 
Gianc." In 1835 he resigned the position 
of attorney general having been elected to 
the legislature. In 1841 he was chosen 
judge of the supreme 'Court of Illinois which 
he resigned two years later to take a seat in 
congress. It was during this period of his 
;ife, while a member of the lower house, 
that he established his reputation and took 
the side of those who contended that con- 
gress had no constitutional right to restrict 
the extension of slavery further than the 
agreement between the states made in 1 820. 
This, in spite of his being opposed to slav- 
ery, and only on grounds which he believed 
to be right, favored what was called the 
Missouri compromise. In 1847 M f - Doug- 
las was ch »sen United States senator for 
six years, and greatly distinguished himself. 
In 1S52 he was re-elected to the same office. 
During this latter term, under his leader- 



ship, the " Kansas-Nebraska bill " was car- 
ried in the senate. In 1858, nothwith- 
standing the fierce contest made by his able 
competitor for the position, Abraham Lin- 
coln, and with the administration of Bu- 
chanan arrayed against him, Mr. Douglas 
was re-elected senator. After the trouble 
in the Charleston convention, when by the 
withdrawal of several state delegates with- 
out a nomination, the Union Democrats, 
in convention at Baltimore, in 1S60, nomi- 
nated Mr. Douglas as their candidate for 
presidency. The results of this election are 
well known and the great events of 1861 
coming on, Mr. Douglas was spared their 
full development, dying at Chicago, Illinois. 
June 3, 1 861, after a short illness. His 
last words to his children were, " to obey 
the laws and support the constitution of the 
United States." 



JAMES MONROE, fifth president of the 
<J United States, was born in Westmore- 
land count}', Virginia, April 28, 1758. At 
the age of sixteen he entered William and 
Mary College, but two years later the 
Declaration of Independence having been 
adopted, he left college and hastened to New- 
York where he joined Washington's army as 
a military cadet. 

At the battle of Trenton Monroe per- 
formed gallant service and received a wound 
in the shoulder, and was promoted to a 
captaincy. He acted as aide to Lord Ster- 
ling at the battles of Brandywine, German- 
town and Monmouth. Washington then 
sent him to Virginia to raise a new regimen; 
of which he was to be colonel. The ex- 
hausted condition of Virginia made this im 
possible, but he received his commission. 
He next entered the law office of Thomas 
Jefferson to study law, as there was no open- 
ing for him as an officer in the army, in 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



55 



1782 he was elected to the Virginia assem- 
bly, and the next year he was elected to the 
Continental congress. Realizing the inade- 
quacy of the old articles of confederation, 
he advocated the calling of a convention to 
consider their revision, and introduced in 
congress a resolution empowering congress 
to regulate trade, lay import duties, etc. 
This resolution was referred to a committee, 
of which he was chairman, and the report 
led to the Annapolis convention, which 
called a general convention to meet at Phila- 
delphia in i/Sy, when the constitution was 
drafted. Mr. Monroe began the practice of 
law at Fredericksburg, Virginia, and was 
soon after elected to the legislature, and ap- 
pointed as one of the committee to pass 
upon the adoption of the constitution. He 
opposed it, as giving too much power to the 
central government. He was elected to the 
United States senate in 1789, where he 
allied himself with the Anti-Federalists or 
"Republicans," as they were sometimes 
called. Although his views as to neutrality 
between France and England were directly 
opposed to those of the president, yet Wash- 
ington appointed him minister to France. 
His popularity in France was so great that 
the antagonism of England and her friends 
in this country brought about his recall. He 
then became governor of Virginia. He was 
sent as envoy to France in 1802; minister 
to England in 1803; and envoy to Spain in 
1805. The next year he returned to his 
estate in Virginia, and with an ample in- 
heritance enjoyed a few years of repose. He 
was again called to be governor of Virginia, 
and was then appointed secretary of state 
by President Madison. The war with Eng- 
land soon resulted, and when the capital 
was burned by the British, Mr. Monroe be- 
came secretary of war also, and planned the 
measures for the defense of New Orleans. 



The treasury being exhausted and credit 
gone, he pledged his own estate, and thereby 
made possible the victory of Jackson at New 
Orleans. 

In 1817 Mr. Monroe became president 
of the United States, having been a candi- 
date of the "Republican" party, which at 
that time had begun to be called the ' ' Demo- 
cratic" party. In 1 S20 he was re-elected, 
having two hundred and thirty-one electoral 
votes out of two hundred and thirty-two. 
His administration is known as the "Era of 
good-feeling," and party lines were almost 
wiped out. The slavery question began to 
assume importance at this time, and the 
Missouri Compromise was passed. The 
famous " Monroe Doctrine" originated in a 
great state paper of President Monroe upon 
the rumored interference of the Holy Alli- 
ance to prevent the formation of free repub- 
lics in South America. President Monroe 
acknowledged their independence, and pro- 
mulgated his great "Doctrine," which has 
been held in reverence since. Mr. Monroe's 
death occurred in New York on July 4, 1831. 



THOMAS ALVA EDISON, the master 
wizard of electrical science and whose 
name is synonymous with the subjugation 
of electricity to the service of man, was 
born in 1847 at Milan, Ohio, and it was at 
Port Huron, Michigan, whither his parents 
had moved in 1854, that his self-education 
began — for he never attended school for 
more than two months. He eagerly de- 
voured every book he could lay his hands on 
and is said to have read through an encyclo- 
pedia without missing a word. At thirteen he 
began his working life as a trainboy upon the 
Grand Trunk Railway between Port Huron 
and Detroit. Much of his time was now 
spent in Detroit, where he found increased 
facilities for reading at the public libraries, 



5G 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRA P 7 7 T 



He was not content to be a newsboy, so he 
got logetner three hundred pounds of type 
and started the issue of the " Grand Trunk 
Herald." It was only a small amateur 
weekly, printed on one side, the impression 
being made from the type by hand. Chemi- 
cal research was his next undertaking and 
a laboratory was added to his movable pub- 
lishing house, which, by the way, was an 
old freight car. One day, however, as he 
was experimenting with some phosphorus, 
it ignited and the irate conductor threw the 
young seeker after the truth, chemicals and 
all, from the train. His office and laboratory 
were then removed to the cellar of his fa- 
ther's house. As he grew to manhood he 
decided to become an operator. He won 
his opportunity by saving the life of a child, 
whose father was an old operator, and out of 
gratitude he gave Mr. Edison lessons in teleg- 
raphy. Five months later he was compe- 
tent to fill a position in the railroad office 
at Port Huron. Hence he peregrinated to 
Stratford, Ontario, and thence successively 
to Adrian, Fort Wayne, Indianapolis, Cin- 
cinnati, Memphis, Louisville and Boston, 
gradually becoming an expert operator and 
gaining experience that enabled him to 
evolve many ingenious ideas for the im- 
provement of telegraphic appliances. At 
Memphis he constructed an automatic re- 
pealer, which enabled Louisville and New- 
Orleans to communicate direct, and received 
nothing more than the thanks of his em- 
ployers. Mr. Edison came to New York in 
1870 in search of an opening more suitable 
to his capabilities and ambitions. He hap- 
pened to be in the office of the Laws Gold 
Reporting Company when one of the in- 
struments got out of order, and even the 
inventor of the system could not make it 
work. Edison requested to be allowed to 
attempt the task, and in a few minutes he 



had overcome the difficulty and secured an 
advantageous engagement. For several 
3 ears he had a contract with the Western 
Union and the Gold Stock companies, 
whereby he received a large salary, besides 
a special price for all telegraphic improve- 
ments he could suggest. Later, as the 
head of the Edison General Electric com- 
pany, with its numerous subordinate organ- 
izations and connections all over the civil- 
ized world, he became several times a 
millionaire. Mr. Edison invented the pho- 
nograph and kinetograph which bear his 
name, the carbon telephone, the tasimeter, 
and the duplex and quadruplex systems of 
telegraph}'. 

JAMES LONGSTREET, one of the most 
conspicuous of the Confederate generals 
during the Civil war, was born in 1820, in 
South Carolina, but was early taken by his 
parents to Alabama where he grew to man- 
hood and received his early education. He 
graduated at the United States military 
academy in 1842, entering the army as 
lieutenant and spent a few years in the fron- 
tier service. When the Mexican war broke 
out he was called to the front and partici- 
pated in all the principal battles of that war 
up to the storming of Chapultepec, where 
he received severe wounds. For gallant 
conduct at Contreras, Cherubusco, and Mo- 
lino del Rey he received the brevets of cap- 
tain and major. After the close of the 
Mexican war Longstreet served as adjutant 
and captain on frontier service in Texas un- 
til 1858 when he was transferred to the staff 
as paymaster with rank of major. In June, 
1 86 1, he resigned to join the Confederacy 
and immediately went to the front, com- 
manding a brigade at Bull Run the follow- 
ing month. Promoted to be major-general 
in 1862 he thereafter bore a conspicuous 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



Di 



part and rendered valuable service to the 
Confederate cause. He participated in 
many of the most severe battles of the Civil 
war including Bull Run (first and second), 
Seven Pines, Gainer,' Mill, Fraziers Farm, 
Malvern Hill, Antietam, Frederickburg, 
Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, Chickamauga, 
the Wilderness, Petersburg and most of the 
fighting about Richmond. 

When the war closed General Long- 
street accepted the result, renewed his alle- 
giance to the government, and thereafter 
labored earnestly to obliterate all traces of 
war and promote an era of good feeling be- 
tween all sections of the country. He took 
up his residence in New Orleans, and took 
an active interest and prominent part in 
public affairs, served as surveyor of that 
port for several years; was commissioner of 
engineers for Louisiana, served four years 
as school commissioner, etc. In 1875 he 
was appointed supervisor of internal revenue 
and settled in Georgia. After that time he 
served four years as United States minister 
to Turkey, and also for a number of years 
was United States marshal of Georgia, be- 
sides having held other important official 
positions. 

JOHN RUTLEDGE, the second chief- 
justice of the United States, was born 
at Charleston, South Carolina, in 1739. 
He was a son of John Rutledge, who had 
left Ireland for America about five years 
prior to the birth of our subject, and a 
brother of Edward Rutledge, a signer of the 
Declaration of Independence. John Rut- 
ledge received his legal education at the 
Temple, London, after which he returned 
to Charleston and soon won distinction at 
the bar. He was elected to the old Colonial 
congress in 1765 to protest against the 
"Stamp Act," and was a member of the 



South Carolina convention of 1774, and of 
the Continental congress of that and the 
succeeding year. In 1776 he was chairman 
of the committee that draughted the con- 
stitution of his state, and was president of 
the congress of that state. He was not 
pleased with the state constitution, how- 
ever, and resigned. In 1779 he was again 
chosen governor of the state, and granted 
extraordinary powers, and he at once took 
the field to repel the British. He joined 
the army of General Gates in 1782, and the 
same year was elected to congress. He 
was a member of the constitutional con- 
vention which framed our present constitu- 
tion. In 1789 he was appointed an associate 
justice of the first supreme court of the 
United States. He resigned to accept the 
position of chief-justice of his own state. 
Upon the resignation of Judge Jay, he was 
appointed chief-justice of the United States 
in 1795. The appointment was never con- 
firmed, for, after presiding at one session, 
his mind became deranged, and he was suc- 
ceeded by Judge Ellsworth. He died at 
Charleston, July 23, 1800. 



RALPH WALDO EMERSON was one 
of the most noted literary men of his 
time. He was born in Boston, Massachu- 
setts, May 25, 1803. He had a minister for 
an ancestor, either on the paternal or ma- 
ternal side, in every generation for eight 
generations back. His father, Rev. Will- 
iam Emerson, was a native of Concord, 
Massachusetts, born May 6, 1769, graduated 
at Harvard, in 1789, became a Unitarian 
minister; was a fine writer and one of the 
best orators of his day; died in 181 1. 

Ralph Waldo Emerson was fitted for 
college at the public schools of Boston, and 
graduated at Harvard College in 1821, win- 
ning about this time several prizes for es- 



63 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



says. For five years he taught school in 
Boston; in 1826 was licensed to preach, and 
in [829 was ordained as a colleague to Rev. 
Henry Ware of the Second Unitarian church 
in Boston. In 1832 he resigned, making 
the announcement in a sermon of his un- 
willingness longer to administer the rite of 
Jie Lord's Supper, after which he spent 
about a year in Europe. Upon his return 
he begun his career as a lecturer before the 
Boston Mechanics Institute, his subject be- 
ing "Writer." His early lectures on " Italy" 
and "Relation of Man to the Globe" also 
attracted considerable attention; as did also 
his biographical lectures on Michael Angelo, 
Milton, Luther, George Fox, and Edmund 
Burke. After that time he gave many 
courses of lectures in Boston and became 
one of the best known lecturers in America. 
But very few men have rendered such con- 
tinued service in this field. He lectured for 
forty successive seasons before the Salem, 
Massachusetts, Lyceum and also made re- 
peated lecturing tours in this country and in 
England. In 1835 Mr. Emerson took up 
his residence at Concord, Massachusetts, 
where he continued to make his home until 
his death which occurred April 27, 1882. 

Mr. Emerson's literary work covered a 
wide scope. He wrote and published many 
works, essays and poems, which rank high 
among the works of American literary men. 
A few of the many which he produced are 
the following: "Nature;" "The Method 
of Nature;" " Man Thinking;" "The Dial;" 
"Essays;" "Poems;" "English Traits;" 
"The Conduct of Life;" "May-Day and 
other Poems " and " Society and Solitude;" 
besides many others. He was a prominent 
member of the American Academy of Arts 
and Sciences, of the American Philosophical 
Society, the Massachusetts Historical Society 
and other kindred associations. 



ALEXANDER T. STEWART, one of 
the famous merchant princes of New 
York, was born near the city of Belfast, In- 
land, in 1803, and before he was eight years 
of age was left an orphan without any near 
relatives, save an aged grandfather. The 
grandfather being a pious Methodist wanted 
to make a minister of young Stewart, and 
accordingly put him in a school with that 
end in view and he graduated at Trinity Col- 
lege, in Dublin. When scarcely twenty 
years of age he came to New York. His 
first employment was that of a teacher, but 
accident soon made him a merchant. En- 
tering into business relations with an ex- 
perienced man of his acquaintance he soon 
found himself with the rent of a store on 
his hands and alone in a new enterprise. 
Mr. Stewart's business grew rapidly in all 
directions, but its founder had executive 
ability sufficient for any and all emergencies, 
and in time his house became one of the 
greatest mercantile establishments of mod- 
ern times, and the name of Stewart famous. 
Mr. Stewart's death occurred April 10, 
1876. 

JAMES FENIMORE COOPER. — In 
speaking of this noted American nov- 
elist, William Cullen Bryant said: " He 
wrote for mankind at large, hence it is that 
he has earned a fame wider than any Amer- 
ican author of modern times. The crea- 
tions of his genius shall survive through 
centuries to come, and only perish with our 
language." Another eminent writer (Pres- 
cott) said of Cooper: " In his productions 
every American must take an honest pride; 
for surely no one has succeeded like Cooper 
in the portraiture of American character, or 
has given such glowing and eminently truth- 
ful pictures of American scenery." 

|ames Fenimore Cooper was born Sep- 



COMI'EXDIIM OF ];/<><, K.U'iir. 



59 



tember 15, 1789, at Burlington, New Jer- 
sey, and was a son of Judge William Cooper. 
About a year after the birth of our subject 
the family removed to Otsego county, New 
York, and founded the town called " Coop- 
erstown." James Fenimore Cooper spent 
his childhood there and in 1802 entered 
Yale College, and four years later became a 
midshipman in the United States navy. In 
181 1 he was married, quit the seafaring life, 
and began devoting more or less time to lit- 
erary pursuits. His first work was ' ' Pre- 
caution," a novel published in 1S19, and 
three years later he produced "The Spy, a 
Tale of Neutral Ground," which met with 
great favor and was a universal success. 
This was followed by many other works, 
among which may be mentioned the follow- 
ing: ' ' The Pioneers, " ' ' The Pilot, " " Last 
of the Mohicans," "The Prairie," "The 
Red Rover," "The Manikins," "Home- 
ward Bound," "Home as Found," "History 
of the United States Navy," "The Path- 
finder," "Wing and Wing," "Afloat and 
Ashore," "The Chain-Bearer," "Oak- 
Openings," etc. J. Fenimore Cooper died 
at Cooperstown, New York, September 14, 
1851. 

MARSHALL FIELD, one of the mer- 
chant princes of America, ranks among 
the most successful business men of the cen- 
tury. He was born in 1835 at Conway, 
Massachusetts. He spent his early life on 
a farm and secured a fair education in the 
common schools, supplementing this with a 
course at the Conway Academy. His 
natural bent ran in the channels of commer- 
cial life, and at the age of seventeen he was 
given a position in a store at Pittsfield, 
Massachusetts. Mr. Field remained there 
four years and removed to Chicago in 1856. 
He began his career in Chicago as a clerk 



in the wholesale dry goods house of Cooley, 
Wadsworth & Company, which later be- 
came Cooley, Farwell & Company, and still 
later John V. Farwell & Company. He 
remained with them four years and exhibit- 
ed marked ability, in recognition of which 
he was given a partnership. In 1865 Mr. 
Field and L. Z. Leiter, who was also a 
tuber of the firm, withdrew and formed 
the firm of Field, Palmer & Leiter, the 
third partner being Potter Palmer, and they 
continued in business until 1867, when Mr. 
Palmer retired and the firm became Field, 
Leiter & Company. They ran under the 
latter name until 1 881, when Mr. Leiter re- 
tired and the house has since continued un- 
der the name of Marshall Field & Company. 
The phenomenal success accredited to the 
house is largely due to the marked ability 
of Mr. Field, the house had become one of 
the foremost in the west, with an annual 
sale of $8,000,000 in 1870. The total loss 
of the firm during the Chicago fire was 
$3,500,000 of which $2,500,000 was re- 
covered through the insurance companies. 
It rapidly recovered from the effects of this 
and to-day the annual sales amount to over 
$40,000,000. Mr. Field's real estate hold- 
ings amounted to $ to, 000, 000. He was 
one of the heaviest subscribers to the Bap- 
tist University fund although he is a Presby- 
terian, and gave $1,000,000 for the endow- 
ment of the Field Columbian Museum — 
one of the greatest institutions of the kind 
in the world. 

EDGAR WILSON NYE. who won an im- 
mense popularity under the pen name 
of " Bill Nye," was one of the most eccen- 
tric humorists of his day. He was born Au- 
gust 25, 1850, at Shirley, Piscataqua coun- 
ty, Maine, "at a very early age" as he ex- 
presses it. He took an academic course in 



60 



COMTEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



River Falls, Wisconsin, from whence, after 
his graduation, he removed to Wyoming 
T< rritory. He studied law and was ad- 
mitted to the bar in 1876. He began when 
quite young to contribute humorous sketches 
to the newspapers, became connected with 
various western journals and achieved a 
brilliant success as a humorist. Mr. Nye 
settled later in New York City where he 
devoted his time to writing funny articles for 
the big newspaper syndicates. He wrote for 
publication in book form the following : 
"Bill Nye and the Boomerang," "The 
Forty Liars," "Baled Hay," "Bill Nye's 
Blossom Rock," "Remarks," etc. His 
death occurred February 21, 1896, at Ashe- 
ville, North Carolina. 



THOMAS DE WITT TALMAGE, one of 
the most celebrated American preach- 
ers, was born January 7, 1832, and was the 
youngest of twelve children. He made his 
preliminary studies at the grammar school 
in New Brunswick, New Jersey. At the age 
of eighteen he joined the church and entered 
the University of the City of New York, and 
graduated in May, 1853. The exercises 
were held in Niblo's Garden and his speech 
aroused the audience to a high pitch of en- 
thusiasm. At the close of his college duties 
he imagined himself interested in the law 
and for three years studied law. Dr. Tal- 
mage then perceived his mistake and pre- 
pared himself for the ministry at the 
Reformed Dutch Church Theological Semi- 
nary at New Brunswick, New Jersey. Just 
after his ordination the young minister re- 
ceived two calls, one from Piermont, New 
York, and the other from Belleville, New 
Jersey. Dr. Talmage accepted the latter 
and for three years filled that charge, when 
he was called to Syracusr, New York. Here 
it was that his sermons first drew large 



crowds of people to his church, and from 
thence dates his popularity. Afterward he 
became the pastor of the Second Reformed 
Dutch church, of Philadelphia, remaining 
seven years, during which period he first 
entered upon the lecture platform and laid 
the foundation for his future reputation. At 
the end of this time he received three calls, 
one from Chicago, one from San Francisco, 
and one from the Central Presbyterian 
church of Brooklyn, which latter at that 
time consisted of only nineteen members 
with a congregation of about thirty-five. 
This church offered him a salary of seven 
thousand dollars and he accepted the call. 
He soon induced the trustees to sell the old 
church and build a new one. They did so 
and erected the Brooklyn Tabernacle, but 
it burned down shortly after it was finished. 
By prompt sympathy and general liberality 
a new church was built and formally opened 
in February, 1874. It contained seats for 
four thousand, six hundred and fifty, but if 
necessary seven thousand could be accom- 
modated. In October, 1878, his salary was 
raised from seven thousand dollars to twelve 
thousand dollars, and in theautumnof 1889 
the second tabernacle was destroyed by fire. 
A third tabernacle was built and it was for- 
mally dedicated on Easter Sunday, 1891. 



JOHN PHILIP SOUSA, conceded as 
being one of the greatest band leaders 
in the world, won his fame while leader of 
the United States Marine Band at Washing- 
ton, District of Columbia. He was not 
originally a band player but was a violinist, 
ami at the age of seventeen he was conduc- 
tor of an opera company, a profession which 
he followed for several years, until he was 
offered the leadership of the Marine Band 
at Washington. The proposition was re- 
pugnant to him at first but he accepted the 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



61 



offer and then ensued ten years of brilliant 
success with that organization. When he 
first took the Marine Band he began to 
gather the national airs of all the nations 
that have representatives in Washington, 
and compiled a comprehensive volume in- 
cluding nearly all the national songs of the 
different nations. He composed a number 
of marches, waltzes and two-steps, promi- 
nent among which are the "Washington 
Post," "Directorate," "King Cotton," 
"High School Cadets," "Belle of Chica- 
go," "Liberty Bell March," "Manhattan 
Beach," " On Parade March," " Thunderer 
March," "Gladiator March," " El Capitan 
March," etc. He became a very extensive 
composer of this class of music. 



JOHN QUINCY ADAMS, sixth president 
of the United States, was born in 
Braintree, Massachusetts, July n, 1767, 
the son of John Adams. At the age of 
eleven he was sent to school at Paris, and 
two years later to Leyden, where he entered 
that great university. He returned to the 
United States in 1785, and graduated from 
Harvard in 1788. He then studied law, 
and was admitted to the bar in 1791. His 
practice brought no income the first two 
years, but he won distinction in literary 
fields, and was appointed minister to The 
Hague in 1794. He married in 1797, and 
went as minister to Berlin the same year, 
serving until 1801, when Jefferson became 
president. He was elected to the senate in 
1803 by the Federalists, but was condemned 
by that party for advocating the Embargo 
Act and other Anti-Federalist measures. He 
was appointed as professor of rhetoric at 
Harvard in 1805, and in 1809 was sent as 
minister to Russia. He assisted in negotiat- 
ing the treaty of peace with England in 
1814, and became minister to that power 



the next year. He served during Monroe's 
administration two terms as secretary of 
state, during which time party lines were 
obliterated, and in 1824 four candidates for 
president appeared, all of whom were iden- 
tified to some extent with the new " Demo- 
cratic" party. Mr. Adams received 84 elec- 
toral votes, Jackson 99, Crawford 41, and 
Clay 37. As no candidate had a majority 
of all votes, the election went to the house 
of representatives, which elected Mr. Adams. 
As Clay had thrown his influence to Mr. 
Adams, Clay became secretary of state, and 
this caused bitter feeling on the part of the 
Jackson Democrats, who were joined by 
Mr. Crawford and his following, and op- 
posed every measure of the administration. 
In the election of 1828 Jackson was elected 
over Mr. Adams by a great majority. 

Mr. Adams entered the lower house of 
congress in 1830, elected from the district 
in which he was born and continued to rep- 
resent it for seventeen years. He was 
known as " the old man eloquent," and his 
work in congress was independent of party. 
He opposed slavery extension and insisted 
upon presenting to congress, one at a time, 
the hundreds of petitions against the slave 
power. One of these petitions, presented in 
1842, was signed by forty-five citizens of 
Massachusetts, and prayed congress for a 
peaceful dissolution of the Union. His 
enemies seized upon this as an opportunity 
to crush their powerful foe, and in a caucus 
meeting determined upon his expulsion from 
congress. Finding they would not be able 
to command enough votes for this, they de- 
cided upon a course that would bring equal 
disgrace. They formulated a resolution to 
the effect that while he merited expulsion, 
the house would, in great mercy, substitute 
its severest censure. When it was read in the 
house the old man, then in his seventy-fifth 



62 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHT. 



year, arose and demanded that the first para- 
graph of the Declaration of Independence 
be read as his defense. It embraced the 
famous sentence, "that whenever any form 
of government becomes destructive to those 
ends, it is the right of the people to alter or 
abolish it, and to institute new government, 
etc., etc." After eleven days of hard fight- 
ing his opponents were defeated. On Febru- 
ary 21, 1848, he rose to address the speaker 
on the Oregon question, when he suddenly 
fell from a stroke of paralysis. He died 
soon after in the rotunda of the capitol, 
whore he had been conveyed by his col- 
leagues. 

SUSAN B. ANTHONY was one of the 
most famous women of America. She 
was born at South Adams, Massachusetts, 
February 15. 1820, the daughter of a 
Quaker. She received a good education 
and became a school teacher, following that 
profession for fifteen years in New York. 
Beginning with about 1852 she became the 
active leader of the woman's rights move- 
ment and won a wide reputation for her 
zeal and ability. She also distinguished 
herself for her zeal and eloquence in the 
temperance and anti-slavery causes, and 
became a conspicuous figure during the war. 
After the close of the war she gave most of 
her labors to the cause of woman's suffrage. 



PHILIP D. ARMOUR, one of the most 
conspicuous figures in the mercantile 
history of America, was born May 16, 1832, 
on a farm at Stockbridge, Madison county, 
New York, and received his early education 
in the common schools of that county. He 
was apprenticed to a farmer and worked 
faithfully and well, being very ambitious and 
desiring to start out for himself. At the 
age of twenty he secured a release from his 



indentures and set out overland for the 
gold fields of California. After a great 
deal of hard work he accumulated a little 
money and then came east and settled 
in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He went into 
the grain receiving and warehouse busi- 
ness and was fairly successful, and later on 
he formed a partnership with John Plankin- 
ton in the pork packing line, the st) lc of the 
firm being Plankinton & Armour. Mr. Ar- 
mour made his first great "deal" in selling 
pork "short" on the New York market in 
the anticipation of the fall of the Confed- 
eracy, and Mr. Armour is said to have made 
through this deal amillion dollars. He then 
established packing houses in Chicago and 
Kansas City, and in 1875 he removed to 
Chicago. He increased his business by add- 
ing to it the shipment of dressed beef to 
the European markets, and man}- other lines 
of trade and manufacturing, and it rapidly 
assumed vast proportions, employing an 
army of men in different lines of the busi- 
ness. Mr. Armour successfully conducted a 
great many speculative deals in pork and 
^rain of immense proportions and also erected 
many large warehouses for the storage of 
j^rain. He became one of the representative 
business men of Chicago, where he became 
closely identified with all enterprises of a 
public nature, but his fame as a great busi- 
ness man extended to all parts of the world. 
He founded the "Armour Institute " at Chi- 
1 and also contributed largely to benevo- 
lent and charitable institutions. 



ROBERT FULTON.— Although Fulton 
is best known as the inventor of the 
first successful steamboat, yet his claims to 
distinction do not rest alone upon that, for 
he was an inventor along other lines, a 
painter and an author. He was born at 
Little Britain, Lancaster county, Pennsyl 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



65 



vania, in 1765, of Scotch-Irish ancestry. 
At the age of seventeen he removed to Phila- 
delphia, and there and in New York en- 
gaged in miniature painting with success 
both from a pecuniary and artistic point of 
view. With the results of his labors he pur- 
chased a farm for the support of his mother. 
He went to London and studied under the 
great painter, Benjamin West, and all 
through life retained his fondness for art 
and gave evidence of much ability in that 
line. While in England he was brought in 
contact with the Duke of Bridgewater, the 
father of the English canal system; Lord 
Stanhope, an eminent mechanician, and 
James Watt, the inventor of the steam en- 
gine. Their influence turned his mind to its 
true field of labor, that of mechanical in- 
vention. Machines for flax spinning, 
marble sawing, rope making, and for remov- 
ing earth from excavations, are among his 
earliest ventures. His "Treatise on the 
Improvement of Canal Navigation, " issued 
in 1 796, and a series of essays on canals 
were soon followed by an English patent 
for canal improvements. In 1797 he went 
to Paris, where he resided until 1S06, and 
there invented a submarine torpedo boat for 
maritime defense, but which was rejected 
by the governments of France, England and 
the United States. In 1 803 he offered to con- 
struct for the Emperor Napoleon a steam- 
boat that would assist in carrying out the 
plan of invading Great Britain then medi- 
tated by that great captain. In pursuance 
he constructed his first steamboat on the 
Seine, but it did not prove a full success 
and the idea was abandoned by the French 
government. By the aid of Livingston, 
then United States minister to France, 
Fulton purchased, in 1806, an engine which 
he brought to this country. After studying 

the defects of his own and other attempts in 

4 



this line he built and launched in 1807 the 
Clermont, the first successful steamboat. 
This craft only attained a speed of five 
miles an hour while going up North river. 
His first patent not fully covering his in- 
vention, Fulton was engaged in many law 
suits for infringement. He constructed 
many steamboats, ferryboats, etc., among 
these being the United States steamer 
" Fulton the First," built in 18 14, the first 
war steamer ever built. This craft never 
attained any great speed owing to some de- 
fects in construction and accidentally blew 
up in 1829. Fulton died in New York, Feb- 
ruary 21, 1 Si 5. 



SALMON PORTLAND CHASE, sixth 
chief-justice of the United States, and 
one of the most eminent of American jurists, 
was born in Cornish, New Hampshire, Jan- 
uary 13, 1808. At the age of nine he was 
left in poverty by the death of his father, 
but means were found to educate him. He 
was sent to his uncle, a bishop, who con- 
ducted an academy near Columbus, Ohio, 
and here young Chase worked on the farm 
and attended school. At the age of fifteen 
he returned to his native state and entered 
Dartmouth College, from which he gradu- 
ated in 1 826. He then went to Washington, 
and engaged in teaching school, and study- 
ing law under the instruction of William 
Wirt. He was licensed to practice in 1829, 
and went to Cincinnati, where he had a 
hard struggle for several years following. 
He had in the meantime prepared notes on 
the statutes of Ohio, which, when published, 
brought him into prominence locally. He 
was soon after appointed solicitor of the 
United States Bank. In 1837 he appeared 
as counsel for a fugitive slave woman, Ma- 
tilda, and sought by all the powers of his 
learning and eloquence to prevent her owner 



66 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRA I'll Y 



from reclaiming her. He acted in many 
other cases, and devolved the trite expres- 
sion, "Slavery is sectional, freedom is na- 
tional." He was employed to defend Van 
Zandt before the supreme court of the United 
States in 1846, which was one of the most 
noted cases connected with the great strug- 
gle against slavery. By this time Mr. Chase 
had become the recognized leader of that 
element known as " free-soilers." He was 
elected to the United States senate in 1849, 
and was chosen governor of Ohio in 1855 
and re-elected in 1857. He was chosen to 
the United States senate from Ohio in 1861, 
but was made secretary of the treasury by 
Lincoln and accepted. He inaugurated a 
financial system to replenish the exhausted 
treasury and meet the demands of the great- 
est war in history and at the same time to 
revive the industries of the country. One 
of the measures which afterward called for 
his judicial attention was the issuance of 
currency notes which were made a legal 
tender in payment of debts. When this 
question came before him as chief-justice 
of the United States he reversed his former 
action and declared the measure unconstitu- 
tional. The national banking system, by 
which all notes issued were to be based on 
funded government bonds of equal or greater 
amounts, had its direct origin with Mr. Chase. 
Mr. Chase resigned the treasury port- 
folio in 1864, and was appointed the same 
year as chief-justice of the United States 
supreme court. The great questions that 
came up before him at this crisis in the life 
of the nation were no less than those which 
confronted the first chief-justice at the for- 
mation of our government. Reconstruction, 
private, state and national interests, the 
constitutionality of the acts of congress 
passed in times of great excitement, the 
construction and interpretation to be placed 



upon the several amendments to the national 
constitution, — these were among the vital 
questions requiring prompt decision. He 
received a paralytic stroke in 1870, which 
impaired his health, thcugh his mental 
powers were not affected. He continued to 
preside at the opening terms for two years 
iollowing and died May 7, 1873. 



HARRfET ELIZABETH BEECHER 
STOWE, a celebrated American writ; 
er, was born June 14, 1812, at Litchfield, 
Connecticut. She was a daughter of Lyman 
Beecher and a sister of Henry Ward Beecher, 
two noted divines; was carefully educated, 
and taught school for several years at Hart- 
ford, Connecticut. In 1832 Miss Beecher 
married Professor Stowe, then of Lane Semi- 
nary, Cincinnati, Ohio, and afterwards at 
Bowdoin College and Andover Seminary. 
Mrs. Stowe published in 1849 "The May- 
flower, or sketches of the descendants of the 
Pilgrims," and in 1851 commenced in the 
"National Era "of Washington, a serial story 
which was published separately in 1852 under 
the title of "Uncle Tom's Cabin." This 
book attained almost unparalleled success 
both at home and abroad, and within ten years 
it had been translated in almost every lan- 
guage of the civilized world. Mrs. Stowe pub- 
lished in 1853 a "Key to Uncle Tom's Cabin" 
in which the data that she used was published 
and its truthfulness was corroborated. In 
1853 she accompanied her husband and 
brother to Europe, and on her return pub- 
lished ' ' Sunny Memories of Foreign Lands " 
in 1854. Mrs. Stowe was for some time 
one of the editors of the " Atlantic Monthly " 
and the " Hearth and Home," for which 
she had written a number of articles. 
Among these, also published separately, are 
" Dred, a tale of the Great Dismal Swamp " 
(later published under the title of " Nina 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



67 



Gordon"); "The Minister's Wooing;" "The 
Pearl of Orr's Island;" "Agnes of Sorrento;" 
"Oldtown Folks;" " My Wife and I;" "Bible 
Heroines," and "A Dog's Mission." Mrs. 
Stowe's death occurred July I, 1896, at 
Hartford, Connecticut. 



THOMAS JONATHAN JACKSON, bet- 
ter known as "Stonewall" Jackson, 
was one of the most noted of the Confeder- 
ate generals of the Civil war. He was a 
soldier by nature, an incomparable lieuten- 
ant, sure to execute any operation entrusted 
to him with marvellous precision, judgment 
and courage, and all his individual cam- 
paigns and combats bore the stamp of a 
masterly capacity for war. He was born 
January 21, 1824, at Clarksburg, Harrison 
county, West Virginia. He was early in 
life imbued with the desire to be a soldier 
and it is said walked from the mountains of 
Virginia to Washington, secured the aid of 
his congressman, and was appointed cadet 
at the United States Military Academy at 
West Point from which he was graduated in 

1846. Attached to the army as brevet sec- 
ond lieutenant of the First Artillery, his first 
service was as a subaltern with Magruder's 
battery of light artillery in the Mexican war. 
He participated at the reduction of Vera 
Cruz, and was noticed for gallantry in the 
battles of Cerro Gordo, Contreras, Moline 
del Rey, Chapultepec, and the capture of 
the city of Mexico, receiving the brevets of 
captain for conduct at Contreras and Cher- 
ubusco and of major at Chapultepec. In 
the meantime he had been advanced by 
regular promotion to be first lieutenant in 

1847. In 1852, the war having closed, he 
resigned and became professor of natural 
and experimental philosophy and artillery 
instructor at the Virginia State Military 
Institute at Lexington, Virginia, where he 



remained until Virginia declared for seces- 
sion, he becoming chiefly noted for intense 
religious sentiment coupled with personal 
eccentricities. Upon the breaking out of 
the war he was made colonel and placed in 
command of a force sent to sieze Harper's 
Ferry, which he accomplished May 3, 1861. 
Relieved by General J. E. Johnston, May 
23, he took command of the brigade of 
Valley Virginians, whom he moulded into 
that brave corps, baptized at the first 
Manassas, and ever after famous as the 
"Stonewall Brigade." After this "Stone- 
wall " Jackson was made a major-general, 
in 1 861, and participated until his death in 
all the famous campaigns about Richmond 
and in Virginia, and was a conspicuous fig- 
ure in the memorable battles of that time. 
May 2, 1863, at Chancellorsville, he wae 
wounded severely by his own troops, two 
balls shattering his left arm and another 
passing through the palm of his right hand. 
The left arm was amputated, but pneumonia 
intervened, and, weakened by the great loss 
of blood, he died May 10, 1863. The more 
his operations in the Shenandoah valley in 
1862 are studied the more striking must the 
merits of this great soldier appear. 



JOHN GREENLEAF WHITTIER.— 
Near to the heart of the people of the 
Anglo-Saxon race will ever lie the verses of 
this, the "Quaker Poet." The author of 
"Barclay of Ury," "Maud Muller" and, 
"Barbara Frietchie," always pure, fervid 
and direct, will be remembered when many 
a more ambitious writer has been forgotten. 
John G. Whittier was born at Haver- 
hill, Massachusetts, December 7, 1807. of 
Quaker parentage. He had but a common- 
school education and passed his boyhood 
days upon a farm. In early life he learned 
the trade of shoemaker. At the age of 



68 



( OMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHT. 



eighteen he began to write verses for the 
Haverhill " Gazette." He spent two years 
after that at the Haverhill academy, after 
which, in 1829, he became editor of the 
"American Manufacturer," at Boston. In 
1830 he succeeded George D. Prentice as 
editor of the "New England Weekly Re- 
view," but the following year returned to 
Haverhill and engaged in farming. In 1832 
and in 1836 he edited the " Gazette." In 
1835 he was elected a member of the legis- 
lature, serving two years. In i836he became 
secretary of the Anti-slavery Society of Phil- 
adelphia. In 1838 and 1839 he edited the 
" Pennsylvania Freeman," but in the latter 
year the office was sacked and burned by a 
mob. In 1840 Whittier settled at Ames- 
bury, Massachusetts. In 1847 he became 
corresponding editor of the " National Era," 
an anti-slavery paper published at Washing- 
ton, and contributed to its columns many of 
his anti-slavery and other favorite lyrics. 
Mr. Whittier lived for many years in retire- 
ment of Quaker simplicity, publishingseveral 
volumes of poetry which have raised him to 
a high place among American authors and 
brought to him the love and admiration of 
his countrymen. In the electoral colleges 
of i860 and 1864 Whittier was a member. 
Much of his time after 1876 was spent at 
Oak Knoll, Danvers, Massachusetts, but 
still retained his residence at Amesbury. 
He never married. His Geath occurred Sep- 
tember 7, 1892. 

The more prominent prose writings of 
John G. Whittier are as follows: "Legends 
of New England," "Justice and Expediency, 
or Slavery Considered with a View to Its Abo- 
lition," " The Stranger in Lowell," "Super- 
naturalism in New England," " Leaves from 
Margaret Smith's Journal," "Old Portraits 
and Modern Sketches" and " Literary 
Sketches." 



DAVID DIXON PORTER, illustrious as 
admiral of the United States navy, and 
famous as one of the most able naval offi- 
cers of America, was born in Pennsylvania, 
June 8, 18 14. His father was also a naval 
officer of distinction, who left the service of 
the United States to become commander of 
the naval forces of Mexico during the war 
between that country and Spain, and 
through this fact David Dixon Porter was 
appointed a midshipman in the Mexican 
navy. Two years later David D. Porter 
joined the United States navy as midship- 
man, rose in rank and eighteen years later 
as a lieutenant he is found actively engaged 
in all the operations of our navy along the 
east coast of Mexico. When the Civil war 
broke out Porter, then a commander, was 
dispatched in the Powhattan to the relief of 
Fort Pickens, Florida. This duty accom- 
plished, he fitted out a mortar flotilla for 
the reduction of the forts guarding the ap- 
proaches to New Orleans, which it was con- 
sidered of vital importance for the govern- 
ment to get possession of. After the fall of 
New Orleans the mortar flotilla was actively 
engaged at Vicksburg, and in the fall of 
1862 Porter was made a rear-admiral and 
placed in command of all the naval forces 
on the western rivers above New Orleans. 
The ability of the man was now con- 
spicuously manifested, not only in the bat- 
tles in which he was engaged, but also in 
the creation of a formidable fleet out of 
river steamboats, which he covered with 
such plating as they would bear. In 1864 
he was transferred to the Atlantic coast to 
command the naval forces destined to oper- 
ate against the defences of Wilmington, 
North Carolina, and on Jan. 15, 18C5, the 
fall of Fort Fisher was hailed by the country 
as a glorious termination of his arduous war 
service. In 1 866 he was made vice-admiral 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



6v, 



and appointed superintendent of the Naval 
Academy. On the death of Farragut, in 
1870, he succeeded that able man as ad- 
miral of the navy. His death occurred at 
Washington, February 13, 1891. 



NATHANIEL GREENE was one of the 
best known of the distinguished gen- 
erals who led the Continental soldiery 
against the hosts of Great Britain during 
the Revolutionary war. He was the son 
of Quaker parents, and was born at War- 
wick, Rhode Island, May 27, 1742. In 
youth he acquired a good education, chiefly 
by his own efforts, as he was a tireless 
reader. In 1770 he was elected a member 
. of the Assembly of his native state. The 
news of the battle of Lexington stirred 
his blood, and he offered his services to 
the government of the colonies, receiving 
the rank of brigadier-general and the com- 
mand of the troops from Rhode Island. 
He led them to the camp at Cambridge, 
and for thus violating the tenets of their 
faith, he was cast out of the Society of 
Friends, or Quakers. He soon won the es- 
teem of General Washington. In August, 

1776, Congress promoted Greene to the 
rank of major-general, and in the battles of 
Trenton and Princeton he led a division. 
At the battle of Brandy wine, September 1 1, 

1777, he greatly distinguished himself, pro- 
tecting the retreat of the Continentals by 
his firm stand. At the battle of German- 
town, October 4, the same year, he com- 
manded the left wing of the army with 
credit. In March, 1778, he reluctantly ac- 
cepted the office of quartermaster-general, 
but only with the understanding that his 
rank in the army would not be affected and 
that in action he should retain his command. 
On the bloody field of Monmouth, June 28, 

1778, he commanded the right wing, as he 



did at the battle of Tiverton Heights. He 
was in command of the army in 1780, dur- 
ing the absence of Washington, and was 
president of the court-martial that tried and 
condemned Major Andre. After General 
Gates' defeat at Camden, North Carolina, in 
the summer of 1780, General Greene was ap- 
pointed to the command of the southernarmy. 
He sent out a force under General Morgan 
who defeated General Tarleton at Cowpens, 
January 17, 1781. On joining his lieuten- 
ant, in February, he found himself out num- 
bered by the British and retreated in good 
order to Virginia, but being reinforced re- 
turned to North Carolina where he fought 
the battle of Guilford, and a few days later 
compelled the retreat of Lord Cornwallis. 
The British were followed by Greene part 
of the way, when the American army 
marched into South Carolina. After vary- 
ing success he fought the battle of Eutaw 
Springs, September 8, 1781. For the latter 
battle and its glorious consequences, which 
virtually closed the war in the Carolinas, 
Greene received a medal from Congress and 
many valuable grants of land from the 
colonies of North and South Carolina and 
Georgia. On the return of peace, after a 
year spent in Rhode Island, General Greene 
took up his residence on his estate near 
Savannah, Georgia, where he died June 19, 
1786. 

EDGAR ALLEN POE.— Among the 
many great literary men whom this 
country has produced, there is perhaps no 
name more widely known than that of Ed- 
gar Allen Poe. He was born at Boston, 
Massachusetts, February 19, 1809. His 
parents were David and Elizabeth (Arnold) 
Poe, both actors, the mother said to have 
been the natural daughter of Benedict Ar- 
nold. The parents died while Edgar was 



70 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



still a child and he was adopted by John 
Allen, a wealthy and influential resident of 
Richmond, Virginia. Edgar was sent to 
school at Stoke, Newington, England, 
where he remained until he was thirteen 
years old; was prepared for college by pri- 
vate tutors, and in 1826 entered the Virginia 
University at Charlottesville. He made 
rapid progress in his studies, and was dis- 
tinguished for his scholarship, but was ex- 
pelled within a year for gambling, after 
which for several years he resided with his 
benefactor at Richmond. He then went to 
Baltimore, and in 1829 published a 71 -page 
pamphlet called " Al Aaraaf, Tamerlane 
and Minor Poems," which, however, at- 
tracted no attention and contained nothing 
of particular merit. In 1830 he was ad- 
mitted as a cadet at West Point, but was 
expelled about a year later for irregulari- 
ties. Returning to the home of Mr. Allen 
he remained for some time, and finally 
quarrelled with his benefactor and enlisted 
as a private soldier in the U. S. army, but 
remained only a short time. Soon after 
this, in 1833, Poe won several prizes for 
literary work, and as a result secured the 
position of editor of frhe "Southern Liter- 
ary Messenger," at Richmond, Virginia. 
Here he married his cousin, Virginia 
Clemm, who clung to him with fond devo- 
tion through all the many trials that came 
to them until her death in January, 1848. 
Poe remained with the "Messenger" for 
several years, writing meanwhile many 
tales, reviews, essays and poems. He aft- 
erward earned a precarious living by his 
pen in New York for a time; in 1839 be- 
came editor of "Burton's Gentleman's 
Magazine" ; in 1840 to 1842 was editor of 
" Graham's Magazine," and drifted around 
from one place to another, returning to 
New York in 1844. In 1845 his best 



known production, "The Raven," appeared 
in the "Whig Review, " and gained him a 
reputation which is now almost world-wide. 
He then acted as editor and contributor on 
various magazines and periodicals until the 
death of his faithful wife in 1S48. In the 
summer of 1849 he was engaged to be mar- 
ried to a lady of fortune in Richmond, Vir- 
ginia, and the day set for the wedding. 
He started for New York to make prepara- 
tions for the event, but, it is said, began 
drinking, was attacked with dilirium tre- 
mens in Baltimore and was removed to a 
hospital, where he died, October 7, 1849. 
The works of Edgar Allen Poe have been 
repeatedly published since his death, both 
in Europe and America, and have attained 
an immense popularity. 



HORATIO GATES, one of the prom- 
inent figures in the American war for 
Independence, was not a native of the col- 
onies but was born in England in 1728. In 
early life he entered the British army and 
attained the rank of major. At the capture 
of Martinico he was aide to General Monk- 
ton and after the peace of Aix la Chapelle, 
in 174S, he was among the first troops that 
landed at Halifax. He was with Braddock 
at his defeat in 1755, and was there severe- 
ly wounded. At the conclusion of the 
French and Indian war Gates purchased an 
estate in Virginia, and, resigning from the 
British army, settled down to life as a 
planter. On the breaking out of the Rev- 
olutionary war he entered the service of the 
colonies and was made adjutant-general of 
the Continental forces with the rank ol 
brigadier-general. He accompanied Wash- 
ington when he assumed the command ol 
the army. In June, 1776, he was appoint- 
ed to the command of the army of Canada, 
but was superseded in May of the following 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



71 



year by General Schuyler. In August, 
1777, however, the command of that army 
was restored to General Gates and Septem- 
ber 19 he fought the battle of Bemis 
Heights. October 7, the same year, he 
won the battle of Stillwater, or Saratoga, 
and October 17 received the surrender of 
General Burgoyne and his army, the pivotal 
point of the war. This gave him a brilliant 
reputation. June 13, 1780, General Gates 
was appointed to the command of the 
southern military division, and August 16 of 
that year suffered defeat at the hands of 
Lord Cornwallis, at Camden, North Car- 
olina. In December following he was 
superseded in the command by General 
Nathaniel Greene. 

On the signing of the peace treaty Gen- 
eral Gates retired to his plantation in 
Berkeley county, Virginia, where he lived 
until 1790* when, emancipating all his 
slaves, he removed to New York City, where 
he resided until his death, April 10, 1806. 



LYMAN J. GAGE.— When President Mc- 
Kinley selected Lyman J. Gage as sec- 
retary of the treasury he chose one of the 
most eminent financiers of the century. Mr. 
Gage was born June 28, 1836, at De Ruy- 
ter, Madison county, New York, and was of 
English descent. He went to Rome, New 
York, with his parents when he was ten 
years old, and received his early education 
in the Rome Academy. Mr. Gage gradu- 
ated from the same, and his first position 
was that of a clerk in the post office. When 
he was fifteen years of age he was detailed 
as mail agent on the Rome & Watertown 
R. R. until the postmaster-general appointed 
regular agents for the route. In 1854, when 
he was in his eighteenth year, he entered 
the Oneida Central Bank at Rome as a 
junior clerk at a salary of one hundred dol- 



lars per year. Being unable at the end of 
one year and a half's service to obtain an 
increase in salary he determined to seek a 
wider field of labor. Mr. Gage set out in 
the fall of 1 85 5 and arrived in Chicago, 
Illinois, on October 3, and soon obtained a 
situation in Nathan Cobb's lumber yard and 
planing mill. He remained there three years 
as a bookkeeper, teamster, etc., and left on 
account of change in the management. But 
not being able to find anything else to do he 
accepted the position of night watchman in 
the place for a period of six weeks. He 
then became a bookkeeper for the Mer- 
chants Saving, Loan and Trust Company at 
a salary of five hundred dollars per year. 
He rapidly advanced in the service of this 
company and in 1868 he was made cashier. 
Mr. Gage was next offered the position of 
cashier of the First National Bank and ac- 
cepted the offer. He became the president 
of the First National Bank of Chicago Jan- 
uary 24, 1 89 1, and in 1897 he was appointed 
secretary of the treasury. His ability as a 
financier and the prominent part he took in 
the discussion of financial affairs while presi- 
dent of the great Chicago bank gave him a 
national reputation. 



ANDREW JACKSON, the seventh pres- 
ident of the United States, was born 
at the Waxhaw settlement, Union county, 
North Carolina, March 15, 1767. His 
parents were Scotch-Irish, natives of Carr- 
ickfergus, who came to this country in 1665 
and settled on Twelve-Mile creek, a trib- 
utary of the Catawba. His father, who 
was a poor farm laborer, died shortly be- 
fore Andrew's birth, when the mother re- 
moved to Waxhaw, where some relatives 
lived. Andrew's education was very limited, 
he showing no aptitude for study. In 1780 
when but thirteen years of age, he and his 



72 



COMPEXDJL'M OF BIOGRAPHY. 



brother Robert volunteered to serve in the 
American partisan troops under General 
Sumter, and witnessed the defeat at Hang- 
ing Rock. The following year the boys 
were both taken prisoners by the enemy 
and endured brutal treatment from the 
British officers while confined at Camden. 
They both took the small pox, when the 
mother procured their exchange but Robert 
died shortly after. The mother died in 
Charleston of ship fever, the same year. 

Young Jackson, now in destitute cir- 
cumstances, worked for about six months in 
a saddler's shop, and then turned school 
master, although but little fitted for the 
position. He now began to think of a pro- 
fession and at Salisbury, North Carolina, 
entered upon the study of law, but from all 
accounts gave but little attention to his 
books, being one of the most roistering, 
rollicking fellows in that town, indulging in 
many of the vices of his time. In 1786 he 
was admitted to the bar and in 1788 re- 
moved to Nashville, then in North Carolina, 
with the appointment of public prosecutor, 
linn an office of little honor or emolument, 
but requiring much nerve, for which young 
Jackson was already noted. Two years 
later, when Tennessee became a territory 
he was appointed by Washington to the 
position of United States attorney for that 
district. In 1791 he married Mrs. Rachel 
Robards, a daughter of Colonel John Don- 
elson, who was supposed at the time to 
have been divorced from her former hus- 
band that year by act of legislature of Vir- 
ginia, but two years later, on finding that 
this divorce was not legal, and a new bill of 
separation being granted by the courts of 
Kentucky, they were remarried in 1 793- 
This was used as a handle by his oppo- 
nents in the political campaign afterwards. 
Jackson was untiring in his efforts as United 



States attorney and obtained much influence. 
He was chosen a member of the Constitu- 
tional Convention of 1796, when Tennessee 
became a state and was its first represent- 
ative in congress. In 1797 he was chosen 
United States senator, but resigned the fol- 
lowing year to accept a seat on the supreme 
court of Tennessee which he held until 
1804. He was elected major-general of 
the militia of that state in 1801. In 1804. 
being unsuccessful in obtaining the govern- 
orship of Louisiana, the new territory, he 
retired from public life to the Hermitage, 
his plantation. On the outbreak of the 
war with Great Britain in 1S12 he tendered 
his services to the government and went to 
New Orleans with the Tennessee troops in 
January, 1S13. In March of that year he 
was ordered to disband his troops, but later 
marched against the Cherokee Indians, de- 
feating them at Talladega, Emuckfaw 
and Tallapoosa. Having now a national 
reputation, he was appointed major-general 
in the United States army and was sent 
against the British in Florida. He con- 
ducted the defence of Mobile and seized 
Pensacola. He then went with his troops 
to New Orleans, Louisiana, where he gained 
the famous victory of January 8, 181 5. In 
1817-18 he conducted a war against the 
Seminoles, and in 1 82 1 was made governor 
of the new territory of Florida. In 1S23 
he was elected United States senator, but 
in 1 824 was the contestant with J. O. Adams 
for the presidency. Four years later hi 
was elected president, and served two terms. 
In 1832 he took vigorous action against the 
nullifiers of South Carolina, and the next 
year removed the public money from tho 
United States bank. During his second 
term the national debt was extinguished. At 
the close of his administration he retired to 
the Hermitage, where he died Jui +5 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHT. 



73 



ANDREW CARNEGIE, the largest manu- 
facturer of pig-iron, steel rails and 
coke in the world, well deserves a place 
among America's celebrated men. He was 
born November 25, 1 S 3 5 , at Dunfermline, 
Scotland, and emigrated to the United States 
with his father in 1845, settling in Pittsburg. 
Two years later Mr. Carnegie began his 
business career by attending a small station- 
ary engine. This work did not suit him and 
he became a telegraph messenger with the 
Atlantic and Ohio Co., and later he became 
an operator, and was one of the first to read 
telegraphic signals by sound. Mr. Carnegie 
was afterward sent to the Pittsburg office 
of the Pennsylvania Railroad Co., as clerk 
to the superintendent and manager of the 
telegraph lines. While in this position he 
made the acquaintance of Mr. Woodruff, the 
inventor of the sleeping-car. Mr. Carnegie 
immediately became interested and was one 
of the organizers of the company for its con- 
struction after the railroad had adopted it, 
and the success of this venture gave him the 
nucleus of his wealth. He was promoted 
to the superintendency of the Pittsburg 
division of the Pennsylvania Railroad and 
about this time was one of the syndicate 
that purchased the Storey farm on Oil Creek 
which cost forty thousand dollars and in one 
year it yielded over one million dollars in 
cash dividends. Mr. Carnegie later was as- 
sociated with others in establishing a rolling- 
mill, and from this has grown the most ex- 
tensive and complete system of iron and 
steel industries ever controlled by one indi- 
vidual, embracing the Edgar Thomson 
Steel Works; Pittsburg Bessemer Steel 
Works; Lucy Furnaces; Union Iron Mills; 
Union Mill; Keystone Bridge Works; Hart- 
man Steel Works; Frick Coke Co.; Scotia 
Ore Mines. Besides directing his immense 
iron industries he owned eighteen English 



newspapers which he ran in the interest o; 
the Radicals. He has also devoted large 
sums of money to benevolent and educational 
purposes. In 1879 he erected commodious 
swimming baths for the people of Dunferm- 
line, Scotland, and in the following year 
gave forty thousand dollars for a free library. 
Mr. Carnegie gave fifty thousand dollars to 
Bellevue Hospital Medical College in 1884 
to found what is now called "Carnegie Lab- 
oratory, " and in 1SS5 gave five hundred 
thousand dollars to Pittsburg for a public 
library. He also gave two hundred and fifty 
thousand dollars for a music hall and librarj. 
in Allegheny City in 1886, and two hundred 
and fifty thousand dollars to Edinburgh, Scot- 
land, for a free library. He also established 
free libraries at Braddock, Pennsylvania, 
and other places for the benefit of his em- 
ployes. He also published the following 
works, "An American Four-in-hand in 
Britain;" "Round the World;" "Trium- 
phant Democracy; or Fifty Years'. March of 
the Republic." 



GEORGE H. THOMAS, the ■• Rock of 
Chickamauga," one of the besr known 
commanders during the late Civil war, was 
born in Southampton county, Virginia, July 
31, 1 8 16, his parents being of Welsh and 
French origin respectively. In 1836 young 
Thomas was appointed a cadet at the Mili- 
tary Academy, at West Point, from which 
he graduated in 1840, and was promoted to 
the office of second lieutenant in the Third 
Artillery. Shortly after, with his company, 
he went to Florida, where he served for two 
years against the Seminole Indians. In 
1 84 1 he was brevetted first lieutenant for 
gallant conduct. He remained in garrison 
in the south and southwest until 1845, at 
which date with the regiment he joined the 
army under General Taylor, and participat- 



74 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



ed i- *he defense of Fort Brown, the storm- 
ing of Monterey and the battle of Buena 
Vista. After the latter event he remained 
in garrison, now brevetted major, until the 
close of the Mexican war. After a year 
spent in Florida, Captain Thomas was or- 
dered to West Point, where he served as in- 
structor until 1854. He then was trans- 
ferred to California. In May, 1855, Thom- 
as was appointed major of the Second Cav- 
alry, with whom he spent five years in Texas. 
Although a southern man, and surrounded 
by brother officers who all were afterwards 
f.n the Confederate service, Major Thomas 
never swerved from his allegiance to the 
government. A. S. Johnston was the col- 
onel of the regiment, R. E. Lee the lieuten- 
ant-colonel, and W. J. Hardee, senior ma- 
jor, while among the younger officers were 
Hood, Fitz Hugh Lee, Van Dorn and Kirby 
Smith. When these officers left the regi- 
ment to take up arms for the Confederate 
cause he remained with it, and April 17th, 
1 86 1, crossed the Potomac into his native 
state, at its head. After taking an active part 
in the opening scenes of the war on the Poto- 
mac and Shenandoah, in August, 1861, he 
was promoted to be brigadier-general and 
transferred to the Army of the Cumberland. 
January 19-20, 1862, Thomas defeated 
Crittenden at Mill Springs, and this brought 
him into notice and laid the foundation of 
his fame. He continued in command of his 
division until September 20, 1862, except 
during the Corinth campaign when he com- 
manded the right wing of the Army of the 
Tennessee. He was in command of the 
latter at the battle of Perryville, also, Octo- 
ber 8, 1862. 

On the division of the Army of the Cum- 
berland into corps, January 9, 1863, Gen- 
eral Thomas was assigned to the command 
of the Fourteenth, and at the battle of Chick- 



amauga, after the retreat of Rosecrans. 
firmly held his own against the hosts of Gen- 
eral Bragg. A history of his services from 
that on would be a history of the war in the 
southwest. On September 27, 1864, Gen- 
eral Thomas was given command in Ten- 
nessee, and after organizing his army, de- 
feated General Hood in the battle of Nash- 
ville, December' 15 and 16, 1864. Much 
complaint was made before this on account 
of what they termed Thomas' slowness, and 
he was about to be superseded because he 
would not strike until he got ready, but 
when the blow was struck General Grant 
was the first to place on record this vindica- 
tion of Thomas judgment. He received a 
vote of thanks from Congress, and from the 
legislature of Tennessee a gold medal. Af- 
ter the close of the war General Thomas 
had command of several of the military di- 
visions, and died at San Francisco, Cali- 
fornia, March 28, 1870. 



GEORGE BANCROFT, one of the most 
eminent American historians, was a 
native of Massachusetts, born at Worcester, 
October 3, 1800, and a son of Aaron 
Bancroft, D. D. The father, Aaron Ban- 
croft, was born at Reading, Massachusetts, 
November 10, 1755. He graduated at 
Harvard in 1778, became a minister, and for 
half a century was rated as one of the ablest 
preachers in New England. He was also a 
prolific writer and published a number of 
works among which was " Life of George 
Washington." Aaron Bancroft died August 

19. i839- 

The subject of our present biography, 

George Bancroft, graduated at Harvard in 
1 81 7, and the following year entered the 
University of. Gottingen, where he studied 
history and philology under the most emi- 
nent teachers, and in 1820 received the de- 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



75 



gree of doctor of philosophy at Gottingen. 
Upon his return home he published a volume 
of poems, and later a translation of Heeren's 
"Reflections on the Politics of Ancient 
Greece." In 1834 he produced the first 
volume of his " History of the United 
States," this being followed by other vol- 
umes at different intervals later. This was 
his greatest work and ranks as the highest 
authority, taking its place among the great- 
est of American productions. 

George Bancroft was appointed secretary 
of the navy by President Polk in 1845, but 
resigned in 1846 and became minister pleni- 
potentiary to England. In 1849 he retired 
from public life and took up his residence at 
Washington, D. C. In 1867 he was ap- 
pointed United States minister to the court of 
Berlin and negotiated the treaty by which Ger- 
mans coming to the United States were re- 
leased from their allegiance to the govern- 
ment of their native land. In 1871 he was 
minister plenipotentiary to the German em- 
pire and served until 1874. The death of 
George Bancroft occurred January 17, 1891. 



GEORGE GORDON MEADE, a fa- 
vJ mous Union general, was born at 
Cadiz, Spain, December 30, 1S15, his father 
being United States naval agent at that 
port. After receiving a good education he 
entered the West Point Military Academy 
in 1 83 1. From here he was graduated 
June 30, 1835, and received the rank of 
second lieutenant of artillery. He par- 
ticipated in the Seminole war, but resigned 
from the army in October, 1836. He en- 
tered upon the profession of civil engineer, 
which he followed for several years, part of 
the time in the service of the government in 
making surveys of the mouth of the Missis- 
sippi river. His report and results of some 
experiments made by him in this service 



gained Meade much credit. He alsu was 
employed in surveying the boundary hue of 
Texas and the northeastern boundary line 
between the United States and Canada. 
In 1842 he was reappointed in the army to 
the position of second lieutenant of engineers. 
During the Mexican war he served with dis- 
tinction on the staff of General Taylor in 
the battles of Palo Alto, Resaca de la Palma 
and the storming of Monterey. He received 
his brevet of first lieutenant for the latter 
action. In 1851 he was made full first 
lieutenant in his corps; a captain in 1856, 
and major soon after. At the close of the 
war with Mexico he was employed in light' 
house construction and in geodetic surveys 
until the breaking out of the Rebellion, in 
which he gained great reputation. In 
August, 1 861, he was made brigadier-general 
of volunteers and placed in command of the 
second brigade of the Pennsylvania Reserves, 
a division of the First Corps in the Army of 
the Potomac. In the campaign of 1862, 
under McClellan, Meade took an active 
part, being present at the battles of Mechan- 
icsville, Gaines' Mill and Glendale, in the 
latter of which he was severely wounded. 
On rejoining his command he was given a 
division and distinguished himself at its head 
in the battles of South Mountain and Antie- 
tam. During the latter, on the wounding 
of General Hooker, Meade was placed in 
command of the corps and was himself 
slightly wounded. For servi ces he was 
promoted, November, 1862, to the rank 
of major-general of volunteers. On the 
recovery of General Hooker General Meade 
returned to his division and in December, 
1862, at Fredericksburg, led an attack 
which penetrated Lee's right line and swept 
to his rear. Being outnumbered and un- 
supported, he finally was driven back. The 
same month Meade was assigned to the 



76 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHT. 



command of the Fifth Corps, and at Chan- 
cellorsville in May, 1863, his sagacity and 
ability so struck General Hooker that when 
the latter asked to be relieved of the com- 
mand, in June of the same year, he nomi- 
nated Meade as his successor. June 28, 
1863, President Lincoln commissioned Gen- 
eral Meade commander-in-chief of the Army 
of the Potomac, then scattered and moving 
hastily through Pennsylvania to the great 
and decisive battlefield at Gettysburg, at 
which he was in full command. With the 
victory on those July days the name of 
Meade will ever be associated. From that 
time until the close of the war he com- 
manded the Army of the Potomac. In 
1864 General Grant, being placed at the 
head of all the armies, took up his quarters 
with the Army of the Potomac. From that 
time until the surrender of Lee at Appo- 
matox Meade's ability shone conspicuously, 
and his tact in the delicate position in lead- 
ing his army under the eye of his superior 
officer commanded the respect and esteem 
of General Grant. For services Meade was 
promoted to the rank of major-general, and 
on the close of hostilities, in July, 1865, 
was assigned to the command of the military 
division of the Atlantic, with headquarters 
at Philadelphia. This post he held, with 
the exception of a short period on detached 
duty in Georgia, until his death, which took 
place November 6, 1872. 



DAVID CROCKETT was a noted hunter 
and scout, and also one of the earliest 
of American humorists. He was born Au- 
gust 17, 1786, in Tennessee, and was one 
of the most prominent men of his locality, 
serving as representative in congress from 
1X27 until 1 83 1. He attracted consider- 
able notice while a member of congress and 
was closely associated with General Jack- 



son, of whom he was a personal friend. He 
went to Texas and enlisted in the Texan 
army at the time of the revolt of Texas 
against Mexico and gained a wide reputa- 
tion as a scout. He was one of the famous 
one hundred and forty men under Colonel 
W. B. Travis who were besieged in Fort 
Alamo, near San Antonio, Texas, by Gen- 
eral Santa Anna with some five thousand 
Mexicans on February 23, 1S36. The fort 
was defended for ten days, frequent assaults 
being repelled with great slaughter, over 
one thousand Mexicans being killed or 
wounded, while not a man in the fort was 
injured. Finally, on March 6, three as- 
saults were made, and in the hand-to-hand 
fight that followed the last, the Texans were 
wofully outnumbered and overpowered. 
They fought desperately with clubbed mus- 
kets till only six were left alive, including 
W. B. Travis, David Crockett and James 
Bowie. These surrendered under promise 
of protection; but when they were brought 
before Santa Anna he ordered them all to 
be cut to pieces. 



HENRY WATTERSON, one of the most 
conspicuous figures in the history of 
American journalism, was born at Wash- 
ington, District of Columbia, February 16, 
1840. His boyhood days were mostly spent 
in the city of his birth, where his father, 
Harvey M. Watterson, was editor of the 
"Union," a well known journal. 

Owing to a weakness of the eyes, which 
interfered with a systematic course of study, 
young Watterson was educated almost en- 
tirely at home. A successful college career 
was out of the question, but he acquired a 
good knowledge of music, literature and art 
from private tutors, but the most valuable 
part of the training he received was by as- 
sociating with his father and the throng or 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



1 1 



public men whom he met in Washington 
in the stirring days immediately preceding 
the Civil war. He began his journalistic 
career at an early age as dramatic and 
musical critic, and in 1858, became editor 
of the "Democratic Review" and at the 
same time contributed to the "States," 
a journal of liberal opinions published in 
Washington. In this he remained until 
the breaking out of the war, when the 
"States," opposing the administration, was 
suppressed, and young Watterson removed 
to Tennessee. He next appears as editor 
of the Nashville "Republican Banner," the 
most influential paper in the state at that 
time. After the occupation of Nashville by 
the Federal troops, Watterson served as a 
volunteer staff officer in the Confederate' 
service until the close of the war, with the 
exception of a year spent in editing the 
Chattanooga "Rebel." On the close of 
the war he returned to Nashville and re- 
sumed his connection with the "Banner." 
After a trip to Europe he assumed control 
of the Louisville "Journal," which he soon 
combined with the "Courier" and the 
"Democrat" of that place, founding the 
well-known "Courier-Journal," the first 
number of which appeared November 8, 
1868. Mr. Watterson also represented his 
district in congress for several years. 



PATRICK SARSFIELD GILMORE, 
one of the most successful and widely 
known bandmasters and musicians of the 
last half century in America, was born in 
Ballygar, Ireland, on Christmas day, 1829. 
He attended a public school until appren- 
ticed to a wholesale merchant at Athlone, 
of the brass band of which town he soon 
became a member. His passion for music 
conflicting with the duties of a mercantile 
life, his position as clerk was exchanged for 



that of musical instructor to the young sons 
of his employer. At the age of nineteen he 
sailed for America and two days after his 
arrival in Boston was put in charge of the 
band instrument department of a prominent 
music house. In the interests of the pub- 
lications of this house he organized a minstrel 
company known as "Ordway's Eolians," 
with which he first achieved success as a 
cornet soloist. Later on he was called the 
best E-flat cornetist in the United States. 
He became leader, successively, of the Suf- 
folk, Boston Brigade and Salem bands. 
During his connection with the latter he 
inaugurated the famous Fourth of July con- 
certs on Boston Common, since adopted as 
a regular programme for the celebration of 
Independence Day. In 1858 Mr. Gilmore 
founded the organization famous thereafter 
as Gilmore's Band. At the outbreak of the 
Civil war this band was attached to the 
Twenty-Fourth .Massachusetts Infantry. 
Later, when the economical policy of dis- 
pensing with music had proved a mistake, 
Gilmore was entrusted with the re-organiza- 
tion of state military bands, and upon his 
arrival at New Orleans with his own band 
was made bandmaster-general by General 
Banks. On the inauguration of Governor 
Hahn, later on, in Lafayette square, New 
Orleans, ten thousand children, mostly of 
Confederate parents, rose to the baton of 
Gilmore and, accompanied by, six hundred 
instruments, thirty-six guns and the united 
fire of three regiments of infantry, sang the 
Star-Spangled Banner, America and other 
patriotic Union airs. In June, 1867, Mr. 
Gilmore conceived a national musical festi- 
val, which was denounced as a chimerical 
undertaking, but he succeeded and June 15. 
1869, stepped upon the stage of the Boston 
Colosseum, a vast structure erected for the 
occasion, and in the presence of over fifty 



78 



COMPENDIUM OE BIOGRAPHY. 



thousand people lifted his baton over an 
orchestra of one thousand and a chorus of 
ten thousand. On the 17th of June, 1872, 
he opened a still greater festival in Boston, 
when, in addition to an orchestra of two 
thousand and a chorus of twenty thousand, 
were present the Band of the Grenadier 
Guards, of London, of the Garde Repub- 
licaine, of Paris, of Kaiser Franz, of Berlin, 
and one from Dublin, Ireland, together with 
Johann Strauss, Franz Abt and many other 
soloists, vocal and instrumental. Gilmore's 
death occurred September 24, 1892. 



MARTIN VAN BUREN was the eighth 
president of the United States, 1837 
to 1 84 1. He was of Dutch extraction, and 
his ancestors were among the earliest set- 
tlers on the banks of the Hudson. He was 
born December 5, 1782, at Kinderhook, 
New York. Mr. Van Buren took up the 
study of law at the age of fourteen and took 
an active part in political matters before he 
had attained his majority. He commenced 
the practice of law in 1803 at his native 
town, and in 1809 he removed to Hudson, 
Columbia county, New York, where he 
spent seven years gaining strength and wis- 
dom from his contentions at the bar with 
some of the ablest men of the profession. 
Mr. Van Buren was elected to the state 
senate, and from 181 5 until 18 19 he was at- 
torney-general of the state. He was re- 
elected to the senate in 18 16, and in 1818 
he was one of the famous clique of politi- 
cians known as the "Albany regency." 
Mr. Van Buren was a member of the con- 
vention for the revision of the state consti- 
tution, in 1821. In the same year he was 
elected to the United States senate and 
served his term in a manner that caused his 
re-election to that body in 1827, but re- 
signed the following year as he had been 



elected governor of New York. Mr. Van 
Buren was appointed by President Jackson as 
secretary of state in March, 1829, but resigned 
in 1831, and during the recess of congress 
he was appointed minister to England. 
The senate, however, when it convened in 
December refused to ratify the appointment. 
In May, 1832, he was nominated by the 
Democrats as their candidate for vice-presi- 
dent on the ticket with Andrew Jackson, 
and he was elected in the following Novem- 
ber. He received the nomination to suc- 
ceed President Jackson in 1836, as the 
Democratic candidate, and in the electoral 
college he received one hundred and seventy 
votes out of two hundred and eighty-three, 
and was inaugurated March 4, 1837. His 
administration was begun at a time of great 
business depression, and unparalled financial 
distress, which caused the suspension of 
specie payments by the banks. Nearly 
every bank in the country was forced to 
suspend specie payment, and no less than 
I two hundred and fifty-four business houses 
failed in New York in one week. The 
President urged the adoption of the inde- 
pendent treasury idea, which passed through 
the senate twice but each time it was de- 
feated in the house. However the measure 
ultimately became a law near the close of 
President Wan Buren's term of office. An- 
other important measure that was pas- 
was the pre-emption law that gave the act- 
ual settlers preference in the purchase of 
public lands. The question of slavery had 
begun to assume great preponderance dur- 
ing this administration, and a great conflict 
was tided over by the passage of a resolu- 
tion that prohibited petitions or papers that 
in any way related to slavery to be acted 
upon. In the Democratic convention ot 
1840 President Van Buren secured the 
nomination for re-election on that ticket 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



79 



without opposition, but in the election he 
only received the votes of seven states, his 
opponent, W. H. Harrison, being elected 
president. In 1848 Mr. Van Buren was 
the candidate of the " Free-Soilers," but 
was unsuccessful. After this he retired 
from public life and spent the remainder of 
his life on his estate at Kinderhook, where 
he died July 24, 1862. 



W INFIELD SCOTT, a distinguished 
American general, was born June 13, 
1786, near Petersburg, Dinwiddie county, 
Virginia, and was educated at the William 
and Mary College. He studied law and was 
admitted to the bar, and in 1808 he accepted 
an appointment as captain of light artillery, 
and was ordered to New Orleans. In June, 

1 81 2, he was promoted to be lieutenant- 
colonel, and on application was sent to the 
frontier, and reported to General Smyth, 
near Buffalo. He was made adjutant-gen- 
eral with the rank of a colonel, in March, 

1 8 1 3, and the same month attained the colo- 
nelcy of his regiment. He participated in 
the principal battles of the war and was 
wounded many times, and at the close of 
the war he was voted a gold medal by con- 
gress for his services. He was a writer of 
considerable merit on military topics, and 
he gave to the military science, "General 
Regulations of the Army " and " System of 
Infantry and Rifle Practice." He took a 
prominent part in the Black Hawk war, 
and at the beginning of the Mexican war he 
was appointed to take the command of the 
army. Gen. Scott immediately assembled 
his troops at Lobos Island from which he 
moved by transports to Vera Cruz, which 
he took March 29, 1847, and rapidly fol- 
lowed up his first success. He fought the 
battles of Cerro Gordo and Jalapa, both of 
which he won, and proceeded to Pueblo 



where he was preceded by Worth's division 
which had taken the town and waited for the 
coming of Scott. The army was forced to 
wait here for supplies, and August 7th, 
General Scott started on his victorious 
march to the city of Mexico with ten thou- 
sand, seven hundred and thirty-eight men. 
The battles of Contreras, Cherubusco and 
San Antonio were fought August 19-20, 
and on the 24th an armistice was agreed 
upon, but as the commissioners could not 
agree on the terms of settlement, the fight- 
ing was renewed at Molino Del Rey, and 
the Heights of Chapultepec were carried 
by the victorious army of General Scott. 
He gave the enemy no respite, however, 
and vigorously followed up his advantages. 
On September 14, he entered the City of 
Mexico and dictated the terms of surrender 
in the very heart of the Mexican Republic. 
General Scott was offered the presidency of 
the Mexican Republic, but declined. Con- 
gress extended him a vote of thanks and 
ordered a gold medal be struck in honor of 
his generalship and bravery. He was can- 
didate for the presidency on the Whig plat- 
form but was defeated. He was honored by 
having the title of lieutenant-general con- 
ferred upon him in 1855. At the beginning of 
the Civil war he was too infirm to take charge 
of the army, but did signal service in be- 
half of the government. He retired from 
the service November 1, 1861, and in 1864 
he published his "Autobiography." Gen- 
eral Scott died at West Point, May 29, 1866, 



EDWARD EVERETT HALE for man/ 
years occupied a high place among the 
most honored of America's citizens. As 
a preacher he ranks among the foremost 
in the New England states, but to the gen- 
eral public he is best known through his 
writings. Born in Boston, Mass., April 3, 



80 



COMPEXDICM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



1822, a descendant of one of the most 
prominent New England families, he enjoyed 
in his youth many of the advantages denied 
the majority of boys. He received his pre- 
paratory schooling at the Boston Latin 
School, after which he finished his studies at 
Harvard where he was graduated with high 
honors in 1839. Having studied theology 
at home, Mr. Hale embraced the ministry 
and in 1846 became pastor of a Unitarian 
church in Worcester, Massachusetts, a post 
which he occupied about ten years. He 
then, in 1S56, became pastor of the South 
Congregational church in Boston, over which 
he presided many years. 

Mr. Hale also found time to write a 
great many literary works of a high class. 
.Mnong many other well-known productions 
?f his are " The Rosary," " Margaret Per- 
cival in America." "Sketches of Christian 

tory," "Kansas and Nebraska," "Let- 
ters on Irish Emigration," " Ninety Days' 
Worth of Europe," " If, Yes, and Perhaps," 
"Ingham Papers," "Reformation," "Level 
8est and Other Stories, " " Ups and Downs, " 
"Christmas I've and Christmas Day," " In 
His Name," "Our New Crusade," "Work- 
ingmen's Homes," " Boys' Heroes," etc., 
etc., besides many others which might be 
mentioned. One of his works, "In His 
Name," has earned itself enduring fame by 
the good deeds it has called forth. The 
numerous associations known as ' "The King's 
Daughters," which has accomplished much 
good, owe their existence to the story men- 
tioned. 

DAVID GLASCOE FARRAGUT stands 
pre-eminent as one of the greatest na- 
val officers of the world. He was born at 
Campbell's Station, East Tennessee, July 
5, 1801, and entered the navy of the United 
States as a midshipman. He had the good 



fortune to serve under Captain David Por- 
ter, who commanded the " Essex," and by 
whom he was taught the ideas of devotion 
to duty from which he never swerved dur- 
ing all his career. In 1823 Mr. Farragut 
took part in a severe fight, the result of 
which was the suppression of piracy in the 
West Indies. He then entered upon the 
regular duties of his profession which was 
only broken into by a year's residence with 
Charles Folsom, our consul at Tunis, who 
was afterwards a distinguished professor at 
Harvard. Mr. Farragut was one of the best 
linguists in the navy. He had risen through 
the different grades of the service until the 
war of 1861-65 found him a captain resid- 
ing at Norfolk. Virginia. He removed with 
his family to Hastings, on the Hudson, and 
hastened to offer his services to the Federal 
government, and as the capture of New 
Orleans had been resolved upon, Farragut 
was chosen to command the expedition. 
His force consisted of the West Gulf block- 
ading squadron and Porter's mortar flotilla. 
In January, 1862, he hoisted his pennant at 
the mizzen peak of the "Hartford" at 
Hampton roads, set sail from thence on the 
3rd of February and reached Ship Island on 
the 20th of the same month. A council of 
war was held on the 20th of April, in which 
it was decided that whatever was to be done 
must be done quickly. The signal was made 
from the flagship and accordingly the fleet 
weighed anchor at 1:55 on the morning of 
April 24th, and at 3:30 the whole force was 
under way. The history of this brilliant stm 
gleiswellknown.andtheglory ofit made Far- 
ragut a hero and also made him rear admir- 
al. In the summer of 1S62 he ran the batteries 
at Yicksburg, and on March 14. 1863, !.•• 
passed through the fearful and destructive 
fire from Port Hudson, and opened up com- 
munication with Flag-officer Porter, who 



COMPENDIUM <>/■■ BIOGRAPHY. 



m 



had control <>f the upper Mississippi. On 
May 24th he commenced active operations 
against that f<>i I in conjunction with the army 
and it fell on July 9th. Mr. Farragut filled 
the measure >>i Ins fame mi tin- 5th <>f Au- 
gust, 1864, by his greal victory, the capture 
o[ Mobile l lay and 1 he desl 1 ucl ii in <>i the 
< onfederate fleet , including the formidable 
1. mi I MiM issee F01 tins \ i> torj the rank 
ol admiral was given to Mi. Farragut. ll<' 
(lirit.it Portsmouth, New Hampshire, Au 
gusl 4, [870. 

GEORGE W. CHILDS, a philanthropist 
whose remarkable personality stood 
tin 1 he besl and highest type ol Amei i< an 

■ ii 1 enship, and whose whi ile life was an 
objecl lesson in noble living, was boi n in 
1 8 ''i at I laltimore, Mai j land, of humble 
parents, and spenl liis early life in unremil 

till f_^ toil, lli' was a sell made man in the 

fullesl sense ol the word, and gained his 
great wealth by his own efforts, He was a 

man ol vei v great influence, and this, in 

conjunction with his wealth, would have 
been, in the hands ol other men, a means ol 
getting them political preferment, but Mr. 
Childs steadily declined anj suggestions that 
would bring him to figure prominently in 
public affairs, I fe did not choose to found 
a financial dynasty, but devoted all his 
powers to the helping ol others, with the 
most enlightened beneficence and broadest 
sympathy, Mi Childs once rem, irked thai 
In. greatest pleasure in hie was in doing 
■I .ml to oi hers. I If always despised mean 
ness, and one of his objects oi life was to 

prove that a man could he liberal and SUl 

resslnl at the same tune. I'poii these hues 
Mr. Childs made a name ha linn. ell as the 

■ In. ■ I. a oi one of the representath e new s 
papers o 1 America, "The Philadelphia Pub- 
lic I edgei , " w In. h w as owned jointly h\ 



himself anil the Drexel estate, and which he 

edited for thirty years. He acquired con- 
trol of the paper at a tune when it was be 
ili£ published at a heavy loss, sel it upon a 

firm basis of prosperity, and he made it 
more than a money-making machine — he 

made it respeeled as an exponent ,.l the 

best sal.' "I p. .ih s m, .ind il stands as a 

monument to Ins sound judgment and up- 
right business principles. Mr. Childs* char- 
table repute brought him many applications 
lor .is 1 itance, and he never refused to help 
any one that was deserving of aid; and not 

only did he help lllose who asked, but hi' 

would h\ 1. mini inquiry find those who 

needed .lid hilt were too proud to Solicit it. 

I le was a considerable employer of laboi 

and his liberality Was almost unparalleled 

I he death of this greal and good man oc- 
elli ie.1 Febi n.ii v 3d, 1 894. 

PA I KICK HENRY won Ins way to 1111 
dying lame ill the annals of the early 

history of tin; United Slates by introducing 

into the house of burgesses his l.imons I. 

Iniion against the Stamp Act, which hecar- 
ried through, alter a stormy debate, by a 
majority of one, At this time he exclaimed 
•• Caesar had his Brutus, (diaries I Ins Crom- 
well and ( reorge III" (here he was intei 
rupted by cries of " treason ") " maj profit 

by their example. II tllis be lie. IS on make 
the most ol it ." 

Patrick Henry was bom at Studley, 
Hanover county, Virginia, May 29, 1; 

ami was a son ol Colonel |ohn Henry, a 

magistrate and school teacher ol Aberdeen, 

Scotland, and a nephew ol Robertson, the 
historian. He received his education from 

his lather, and was in. lined at the age oi 

eighteen. I fe was t« 1. . banki upted before 

he had reached his t went \ loin I h year, when 

after six weeks ol study he was admitted to 



84 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPI/r. 



the bar. He worked for three years with- 
out a case and finally was applauded for his 
plea ior the people's rights and gained im- 
mense popularity. After his famous Stamp 
Act resolution he was the leader of the pa- 
triots in Virginia. In 1769 he was admitted 
to practice in the general courts and speed- 
ily won a fortune by his distinguished ability 
as a speaker. He was the first speaker of 
the General Congress at Philadelphia in 
1774. He was for a time a colonel of 
militiain 1775, and from 1776 to 1779 and 
1 78 1 to 1786 he was governor of Virginia. 
For a number of years he retired from pub- 
lic life and was tendered and declined a 
number of important political offices, and in 
March, 1789, he was elected state senator 
but aid not take his seat on account of his 
death which occurred at Red Hill, Charlotte 
county, Virginia, June 6, 1799. 



BENEDICT ARNOLD, an American 
general and traitor of the Revolution- 
ary war, is one of the noted characters in 
American history. He was born in Nor- 
wich, Connecticut, January 3, 1740. He 
ran away and enlisted in the army when 
young, but deserted in a short time. He 
then became a merchant at New Haven, 
Connecticut, but failed. In 1775 ne was 
commissioned colonel in the Massachusetts 
militia, and in the autumn of that year was 
placed in command of one thousand men 
for the invasion of Canada. He marched 
his army through the forests of Maine and 
joined General Montgomery before Quebec. 
Their combined forces attacked that city on 
December 31, 1775, and Montgomery was 
killed, and Arnold, severely wounded, was 
compelled to retreat and endure a rigorous 
winter a few miles from the city, where they 
were at the mercy of the Canadian troops 
had they cared to attack them. On his re- 



turn he was raised to the rank of brigadier- 
general. He was given command of a small 
flotilla on Lake Champlain, with which he 
encountered an immense force, and though 
defeated, performed many deeds of valor. 
He resented the action of congress in pro- 
moting a number of his fellow officers and 
neglecting himself. In 1777 he was made 
major-general, and under General Gates at 
Bemis Heights fought valiantly. For some 
reason General Gates found fault with his 
conduct and ordered him under arrest, and 
he was kept in his tent until the battle of 
Stillwater was waxing hot, when Arnold 
mounted his horse and rode to the front of 
his old troop, gave command to charge, and 
rode like a mad man into the thickest of 
the fight and was not overtaken by Gates' 
courier until he had routed the enemy and 
fell wounded. Upon his recovery he was 
made general, and was placed in command 
at Philadelphia. Here he married, and his 
acts of rapacity soon resulted in a court- 
martial. He was sentenced to be repri- 
manded by the commander-in-chief, and 
though Washington performed this duty 
with utmost delicacy and consideration, it 
was never forgiven. Arnold obtained com- 
mand at West Point, the most important 
post held by the Americans, in 1780, and 
immediately offered to surrender it to Sir 
Henry Clinton, British commander at New 
York. Major Andre was sent to arrange 
details with Arnold, but on his return trip 
to New York he was captured by Americans, 
the plot was detected, and Andre suffered 
the death penalty as a spy. Arnold es- 
caped, and was paid about $40,000 by the 
British for his treason and was made briga- 
dier-general. He afterward commanded an 
expedition that plundered a portion of Vir- 
ginia, and another that burned New Lon- 
don, Connecticut, and captured Fort Trum- 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



85 



bull, the commandant of which Arnold mur- 
dered with the sword he had just surren- 
dered. He passed the latter part of his life 
in England, universally despised, and died 
in London June 14, 1801. 



ROBERT G. INGERSOLL, one of the 
most brilliant orators that America has 
produced, also a lawyer of considerable 
merit, won most of his fame as a lecturer. 
Mr. Ingersoll was born August 24, 1833, 
at Dryden, Gates county, New York, and 
received his education in the common schools. 
He went west at the age of twelve, and for 
a short time he attended an academy in 
Tennessee, and also taught school in that 
state. He began the practice of law in the 
southern part of Illinois in 1854. Colonel 
Ingersoll's principal fame was made in 
the lecture room by his lectures in which he 
ridiculed religious faith and creeds and criti- 
cised the Bible and the Christian religion. 
He was the orator of the day in the Decora- 
tion Day celebration in the city of New York 
in 1882 and his oration was widely com- 
mended. He first attracted political notice 
in the convention at Cincinnati in 1876 by 
his brilliant eulogy on James G. Blaine. He 
practiced law in Peoria, Illinois, for a num- 
ber of years, but later located in the city of 
New York. He published the follow- 
ing: "The Gods and other Lectures;" "The 
Ghosts;" "Some Mistakes of Moses;" 
"What Shall I Do To Be Saved;" "Inter- 
views on Talmage and Presbyterian Cate- 
chism ;" The "North American Review 
Controversy;" "Prose Poems;" "A Vision 
of War;" etc. 



JOSEPH ECCLESTON JOHNSTON, 
a noted general in the Confederate army, 
was born in Prince Edward county, Virginia, 
in 1S07. He graduated from West Point 



and entered the army in 1829. For a num- 
ber of years his chief service was garrison 
duty. He saw active service, however, in 
the Seminole war in Florida, part of the 
time as a staff officer of General Scott. He 
resigned his commission in 1837, but re- 
turned to the army a year later, and was 
brevetted captain for gallant services in 
Florida. He was made first lieutenant of 
topographical engineers, and was engaged 
in river and harbor improvements and also 
in the survey of the Texas boundary and 
the northern boundary of the United 
States until the beginning of the war 
with Mexico. He was at the siege of Vera 
Cruz, and at the battle of Cerro Gordo was 
wounded while reconnoitering the enemy's 
position, after which he was brevetted major 
and colonel. He was in all the battles about 
the city of Mexico, and was again wounded 
in the final assault upon that city. After 
the Mexican war closed he returned to duty 
as captain of topographical engineers, but 
in 1855 he was made lieutenant-colonel of 
cavalry and did frontier duty, and was ap- 
pointed inspector-general of the expedition 
to Utah. In i860 he was appointed quar- 
termaster-general with rank of brigadier- 
general. At the outbreak of hostilities in 
1 86 1 he resigned his commission and re- 
ceived the appointment of major-general of 
the Confederate army. He held Harper's 
Ferry, and later fought General Patterson 
about Winchester. At the battle of Bull 
Run he declined command in favor of Beau- 
regard, and acted under that general's direc- 
tions. He commanded the Confederates in 
the famous Peninsular campaign, and was 
severely wounded at Fair Oaks and was 
succeeded in command by General Lee. 
Upon his recovery he was made lieutenant- 
g'eneral and assigned to the command of the 
southwestern department. He attempted 



86 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAriiV. 



to raise the siege of Vicksburg, and was 
finally defeated at Jackson, Mississippi. 
Having been made a general he succeeded 
General Bragg in command of the army of 
Tennessee and was ordered to check General 
Sherman's advance upon Atlanta. Not 
daring to risk a battle with the overwhelm- 
ing forces of Sherman, he slowly retreated 
toward Atlanta, and was relieved of com- 
mand by Fresident Davis and succeeded by 
General Hood. Hood utterly destroyed his 
own army by three furious attacks upon 
Sherman. Johnston was restored to com- 
mand in the Carolinas, and again faced 
Sherman, but was defeated in several en- 
gagements and continued a slow retreat 
toward Richmond. Hearing of Lee's sur- 
render, he communicated with General 
Sherman, and finally surrendered his army 
at Durham, North Carolina, April 26, 1865. 
General Johnston was elected a member 
of the forty-sixth congress and was ap- 
pointed United States railroad commis- 
uer in 1885. His death occurred March 
21, 1891. 

SAMUEL LANGHORNE CLEMENS, 
known throughout the civilized world 
as "Mark Twain,'' is recognized as one of 
the greatest humorists America has pro- 
duced. He was born in Monroe county, 
Missouri, November 30, 1835. He spent his 
boyhood days in his native state and many 
of his earlier experiences are related in vari- 
ous forms in his later writings. One of his 
early acquaintances, Capt. Isaiah Sellers, 
at an early day furnished river news for the 
New Orleans " Picayune," using the nom- 
dc- plume of "Mark Twain." Sellers died 
in 1863 and Clemens took up his nom-de- 
p/iiiuc and made it famous throughout the 
\vrld by his literary work. In 1862 Mr. 
Clemens became a journalist at Virginia, 



Nevada, and afterward followed the same pro- 
fession at San Francisco and Buffalo, New 
York. He accumulated a fortune from the 
sale of his many publications, but in later 
years engaged in business enterprises, partic- 
ularly the manufacture of a typesetting ma- 
chine, which dissipated his fortune and re- 
duced him almost to poverty, but with resolute 
heart he at once again took up his pen and 
engaged in literary work in the effort to 
regain his lost ground. Among the best 
known of his works may be mentioned the fol- 
lowing: ' ' The Jumping Frog, " ' ' Tom Saw- 
yer," " Roughing it,'" " Innocents Abroad," 
"Huckleberry Finn," "Gilded Age," 
"Prince and Pauper," "Million Pound 
Bank Note," "A Yankee in Ring Arthur's 
Court," etc. 



CHRISTOPHER CARSON, better 
known as "Rit Carson;" was an Amer- 
ican trapper and scout who gained a wide 
reputation for his frontier work. He was a 
native of Kentucky, born December 24th, 
1809. He grew to manhood there, devel- 
oping a natural inclination for adventure in 
the pioneer experiences in his native state. 
When yet a young man he became quite 
well known on the frontier. He served as 
a guide to Gen. Fremont in his Rocky 
Mountain explorations and enlisted in the 
army. He was an officer in the United 
States service in both the Mexican war and 
the great Civil war, and in the latter received 
a brevet of brigadier-general for meritorious 
service. His death occurred May 23, 


JOHN SHERMAN.— Statesman, politi- 
cian, cabinet officer andsenator, the name 
of the gentleman who heads this sketch is al- 
most a household word throughout this 
country. Identified with some of the most 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHT. 



87 



important measures adopted by our Govern- 
ment since the close of the Civil war, he may 
well be called one of the leading men of his 
day. 

John Sherman was born at Lancaster, 
Fairfield county, Ohio, May ioth, 1823, 
the son of Charles R. Sherman, an emi- 
nent lawyer and judge of the supreme court 
of Ohio and who died in 1829. The subject 
of this article received an academic educa- 
tion and was admitted to the bar in 1844. 
In the Whig conventions of 1844 and 1848 
he sat as a delegate. He was a member of 
the National house of representatives, 
from 1855 to 1861. In 1 S60 he was re- 
elected to the same position but was chosen 
United States senator before he took his 
seat in the lower house. He was re-elected 
senator in 1866 and 1872 and was long 
chairman of the committee on finance and 
on agriculture. He took a prominent part 
in debates on finance and on the conduct of 
the war, and was one of the authors of the 
reconstruction measures in 1866 and 1867, 
and was appointed secretary of the treas- 
ury March 7th, 1877. 

Mr. Sherman was re-elected United States 
senator from Ohio January 1 8th, 1881, and 
again in 1886 and 1892, during which time 
he was regarded as one of the most promi- 
nent leaders of the Republican party, both 
in the senate and in the country. He was 
several times the favorite of his state for the 
nomination for president. 

On the formation of his cabinet in March, 
1897, President McKinley tendered the posi- 
tion of secretary of state to Mr. Sherman, 
which was accepted. 



WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON, ninth 
president of the United States, was 
born in Charles county, Virginia, February 
9. 1773, the son of Governor Benjamin 



Harrison. He took a course in Hampden- 
Sidney College with a view to the practice 
of medicine, and then went to Philadelphia 
to study under Dr. Rush, but in 1791 he 
entered the army, and obtained the commis- 
sion of ensign, was soon promoted to the 
lieutenancy, and was with General Wayne 
in his war against the Indians. For his 
valuable service he was promoted to the 
rank of captain and given command of Fort 
Washington, now Cincinnati. He was ap- 
pointed secretary of the Northwest Territory 
in 1797, and in 1799 became its representa- 
tive in congress. In 1801 he was appointed 
governor of Indiana Territory, and held the 
position for twelve years, during which time 
he negotiated important treaties with the In- 
dians, causing them to relinquish millions of 
acres of land, and also won the battle of 
Tippecanoe in 181 1. He succeeded in 
obtaining a change in the law which did not 
permit purchase of public lands in less tracts 
than four thousand acres, reducing the limit 
to three hundred and twenty acres. He 
became major-general of Kentucky militia 
and brigadier-general in the United States 
army in 1S12, and won great renown in 
the defense of Fort Meigs, and his victory 
over the British and Indians under Proctor 
and Tecumseh at the Thames river, October 

5- 1813- 

In 1 8 16 General Harrison was elected to 
congress from Ohio, and during the canvass 
was accused of corrupt methods in regard tc 
the commissariat of the army. He demanded 
an investigation after the election and was 
exonerated. In 18 19 he was elected to 
the Ohio state senate, and in 1824 he gave 
his vote as a presidential elector to Henry 
Clay. He became a member of the United 
States senate the same year. During the 
last year of Adams' administration he was 
sent as minister to Colombia, but was re- 



88 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGR A /'//}' 



called by President Jackson the following 
year. He then retired to his estate at North 
Bend, Ohio, a few miles below Cincinnati. In 
1X36 he was a candidate for the presidency, 
but as there were three other candidates 
the votes were divided, he receiving seventy- 
three electoral votes, a majority going to 
Mr. Van Buren, the Democratic candidate. 
Four years later General Harrison was again 
nominated by the Whigs, and elected by a 
tremendous majority. The campaign was 
noted for its novel features, many of which 
have found a permanent place in subsequent 
campaigns. Those peculiar to that cam- 
paign, however, were the " log-cabin " and 
•' hard cider" watchwords, which produced 
great enthusiasm among his followers. One 
month after his inauguration he died from 
an attack of pleurisy, April 4, 1841. 



CHARLES A. DANA, the well-known 
and widely-read journalist of New York 
City, a native of Hinsdale, New Hampshire, 
was born August 8, 1819. He received 
the elements of a good education in his 
youth and studied for two years at Harvard 
University. Owing to some disease of the 
eyes he was unable to complete his course 
and graduate, but was granted the degree of 
A. M. notwithstanding. For some time he 
was editor of the " Harbinger," and was a 
regular contributor to the Boston " Chrono- 
type." In 1847 he became connected with 
the New York ' ' Tribune, " and continued on 
the staff of that journal until 1858. In the 
hitter year he edited and compiled "The 
Household Book of Poetry," and later, in 
connection with George Ripley, edited the 
"New American Cyclopaedia." 

Mr. Dana, on severing his connection 
with the " Tribune " in 1867, became editor 
of the New York "Sun," a paper with 
which he was identified for many years, and 



which he made one of the leaders of thought 
in the eastern part of the United States. 
He wielded a forceful pen and fearlessly 
attacked whatever was corrupt and unworthy 
in politics, state or national. The same 
year, 1867, Mr. Dana organized the New 
York " Sun " Company. 

During the troublous days of the war, 
when the fate of the Nation depended upon 
the armies in the field, Mr. Dana accepted 
the arduous and responsible position of 
assistant secretary of war, and held the 
position during the greater part of 1863 
and 1864. He died October 17, 1897. 



ASA GRAY was recognized throughout the 
scientific world as one of the ablest 
and most eminent of botanists. He was 
born at Paris, Oneida county, New York, 
November 18, 1810. He received his medi- 
cal degree at the Fairfield College of Physi- 
cians and Surgeons, in Herkimer count}-, 
New York, and studied botany with the late 
Professor Torrey, of New York. He was 
appointed botanist to the Wilkes expedition 
in 1834, but declined the offer and became 
professor of natural history in Harvard Uni- 
versity in 1842. He retired from the active 
duties of this post in 1873, and in 1874 he 
was the regent of the Smithsonian Institu- 
tion at Washington, District of Columbia. 
Dr. Gray wrote several books on the sub- 
ject of the many sciences of which he was 
master. In 1836 he published his " Ele- 
ments of Botany," " Manual of Botany" in 
1848; the unfinished "Flora of North 
America," by himself and Dr. Torrey, the 
publication of which commenced in 1838. 
There is another of his unfinished works 
called "Genera Boreali-Americana, " pub- 
lished in 184S, and the "Botany of the 
United States Pacific Exploring Expedition 
in 1854." He wrote many elaborate papers 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



89 



on the botany of the west and southwest 
that were published in the Smithsonian Con- 
tributions, Memoirs, etc., of the American 
Academy of Arts and Sciences, of which in- 
stitution he was president for ten years, 
lie was also the author of many of the 
government reports. ' ' How Plants Grow, " 
" Lessons in Botany," "Structural and Sys- 
tematic Botany," are also works from his 
ready pen. 

Dr. Gray published in 1861 his "Free 
Examination of Darwin's Treatise " and his 
" Darwiniana," in 1876. Mr. Gray was 
elected July 29, 1878, to a membership in 
the Institute of France, Academy of Sciences. 
His death occurred at Cambridge, Massa- 
chusetts, January 30, 1889. 



WILLIAM MAXWELL EVARTS was 
one of the greatest leaders of the 
American bar. He was born in Boston, 
Massachusetts, February 6, 181 8, and grad- 
uated from Yale College in 1837. He took 
up the study of law, which he practiced in 
the city of New York and won great renown 
as an orator and advocate. He affiliated 
with the Republican party, which he joined 
soon after its organization. He was the 
leading counsel employed for the defense of 
President Johnson in his trial for impeach- 
.nent before the senate in April and May of 
1868. 

In July, 1868, Mr. Evarts was appointed 
attorney-general of the United States, and 
served until March 4, 1S69. He was one 
of the three lawyers who were selected by 
President Grant in 1S71 to defend the inter- 
ests of the citizens of the United States be- 
fore the tribunal of arbitration which met 
at Geneva in Switzerland to settle the con- 
troversy over the " Alabama Claims." 

He was one of the most eloquent advo- 
cates in the United States, and many of his 



public addresses have been preserved and 
published.' He was appointed secretary of 
state March 7, 1877, by President Hayes, 
and served during the Hayes administration. 
He was elected senator from the state of 
New York January 21, 1885, and at once 
took rank among the ablest statesmen in 
Congress, and the prominent part he took 
in the discussion of public questions gave 
him a national reputation. 



JOHN WANAMAKER.— The life of this 
great merchant demonstrates the fact 
that the great secret of rising from the ranks 
is, to-day, as in the past ages, not so m uch the 
ability to make money, as to save it, or in 
other words, the ability to live well within 
one's income. Mr. Wanamaker was born in 
Philadelphia in 1838. He started out in 
life working in a brickyard for a mere pit- 
tance, and left that position to work in a 
book store as a clerk, where he earned 
the sum of $5.00 per month, and later on 
was in the employ of a clothier where he 
received twenty-five cents a week more. 
He was only fifteen years of age at that 
time, but was a " money-getter " by instinct, 
and laid by a small sum for a possible rainy 
day. By strict attention to business, com- 
bined with natural ability, he was promoted 
many times, and at the age of twenty he 
had saved $2,000. After several months 
vacation in the south, he returned to Phila- 
delphia and became a master brick mason, 
but this was too tiresome to the young man, 
and he opened up the ' ' Oak Hall " clothing 
store in April, 1861, at Philadelphia. The 
capital of the firm was rather limited, but 
finally, after many discouragements, they 
laid the foundations of one of the largest 
business houses in the world. The estab- 
lishment covers at the present writing some, 
fourteen acres of floor space, and furnishes 



00 



COM PBND1 CM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



employment for five thousand persons. Mr. 
Wanamaker was also a great church worker, 
and built a church that cost him $60,000, 
and he was superintendent of the Sunday- 
school, which had a membership of over 
three thousand children. He steadily re- 
fused to run for mayor or congress and the 
only public office that he ever held was that 
of postmaster-general, under the Harrison 
administration, and here he exhibited his 
extraordinary aptitude for comprehending 
the details of public business. 



DAVID BENNETT HILL, a Demo- 
cratic politician who gained a na- 
tional reputation, was born August 29, 
1843, at Havana, New York. He was 
educated at the academy of his native town, 
and removed to Elmira, New York, in 1862, 
where he studied law. He was admitted to 
the bar in 1864, in which year he was ap- 
pointed city attorney. Mr. Hill soon gained 
a considerable practice, becoming prominent 
in his profession. He developed a taste for 
politics in which he began to take an active 
part in the different campaigns and became 
the recognized leader of the local Democ- 
racy. In 1870 he was elected a member of 
the assembly and was re-elected in 1872. 
While a member of this assembly he formed 
the acquaintance of Samuel J. Tilden, after- 
ward governor of the state, who appointed 
Mr. Hill, W. M. Evarts and Judge Hand 
as a committee to provide a uniform charter 
for the different cities of the state. The 
pressure of professional engagements com- 
pelled him to decline to serve. In 1877 
Mr. Hill was made chairman of the Demo- 
cratic state convention at Albany, his elec- 
tion being due to the Tilden wing of the 
party, ana he he' \ the same position again 
in 1881. He served one term as alderman 
.n Elmira, at the expiration of which term, 



in 1S82, he was elected mayor of Elmira, 
and in September of the same year was 
nominated for lieutenant-governor on the 
Democratic state ticket. He was success- 
ful in the campaign and two years later, 
when Grover Cleveland was elected to the 
presidency, Mr. Hill succeeded to the gov- 
ernorship for the unexpired term. In 1885 
he was elected governor for a full term of 
three years, at the end of which he was re- 
elected, his term expiring in 1891, in which 
year he was elected United States senator. 
In the senate he became a conspicuous 
figure and gained a national reputation. 



ALLEN G. THURMAN. — " The noblest 
Roman of them all *' was the title by 
which Mr. Thurman was called by his com- 
patriots of the Democracy. He was the 
greatest leader of the Democratic party in 
his day and held the esteem of all the 
people, regardless of their political creeds. 
Mr. Thurman was born November 13, 18 13, 
at Lynchburg, Virginia, where he remained 
until he had attained the age of six years, 
when he moved to Ohio. He received an 
academic education and after graduating, 
took up the study of law, was admitted to 
the bar in 1835, and achieved a brilliant 
success in that line. In political life he was 
very successful, and his first office was that 
of representative of the state of Ohio in the 
twenty-ninth congress. He was elected 
judge of the supreme court of Ohio in 1851, 
and was chief justice of the same from 1854 
to 1856. In 1867 he was the choice of the 
Democratic party of his state for governor, 
and was elected to the United States senate 
in 1869 to succeed Benjamin F. Wade, 
and was re-elected to the same position in 
1S/4. He was a prominent figure in the: 
senate, until the expiration of his service i l 
1 88 1. Mr. Thurman was also one of the 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



91 



principal presidental possibilities in the 
Democratic convention held at St. Louis in 
1876. In 1888 he was the Democratic 
nominee for vice-president on the ticket 
with Grover Cleveland, but was defeated. 
Allen Granberry Thurman died December 
12, 1S95, a t Columbus, Ohio. 



CHARLES FARRAR BROWNE, better 
known as " Artemus Ward," was born 
April 26, 1834, m the village of Waterford, 
Maine. He was thirteen years old at the 
time of his father's death, and about a year 
later he was apprenticed to John M Rix, 
who published the "Coos County Dem- 
ocrat " at Lancaster, New Hampshire. Mr. 
Browne remained with him one year, when, 
hearing that his brother Cyrus was starting 
a paper at Norway, Maine, he left Mr. Rix 
and determined to get work on the new 
paper. He worked for his brother until the 
failure of the newspaper, and then went to 
Augusta, Maine, where he remained a few 
weeks and then removed to Skowhegan, 
and secured a position on the "Clarion." 
But either the climate or the work was not 
satisfactory to him, for one night he silently 
left the town and astonished his good mother 
by appearing unexpectedly at home. Mr. 
Browne then received some letters of recom- 
mendation to Messrs. Snow and Wilder, of 
Boston, at whose office Mrs. Partington's 
(B. P. Shillaber) ' ' Carpet Bag " was printed, 
and he was engaged and remained there for 
three years. He then traveled westward in 
search of employment and got as far as Til- 
fin, Ohio, where he found employment in the 
office of the "Advertiser," and remained 
there some months when he proceeded to 
Toledo, Ohio, where he became one of the 
staff of the "Commercial," which position 
he held until 1857. Mr. Browne next went 
to Cleveland, Ohio, and became the local 



editor of the "Plain Dealer," and it was in 
the columns of this paper that he published 
his first articles and signed them "Artemus 
Ward." In i860 he went to New York and 
became the editor of " Vanity Fair," but 
the idea of lecturing here seized him, and he 
was fully determined to make the trial. 
Mr. Browne brought out his lecture, "Babes 
in the Woods " at Clinton Hall, December 
23, 1 861, and in 1862 he published his first 
book entitled, " Artemus Ward; His Book." 
He attained great fame as a lecturer and his 
lectures were not confined to America, for 
he went to England in 1866, and became 
exceedingly popular, both as a lecturer and 
a contributor to "Punch." Mr. Browne 
lectured for the last time January 23, 1867. 
He died in Southampton, England, March 
6, 1867. 

THURLOW WEED, a noted journalist 
and politician, was born in Cairo, New 
York, November 15, 1797. He learned the 
printer's trade at the age of twelve years, 
and worked at this calling for several years 
in various villages in centra! New York. He 
served as quartermaster-sergeant during the 
war of 18 1 2. In 18 18 he established the 
"Agriculturist," at Norwich, New York; 
and became editor of the "Anti-Masonic 
Enquirer," at Rochester, in 1826. In the 
same year he was elected to the legislature 
and re-elected in 1830, when he located in 
Albany, New York, and there started the 
" Evening Journal," and conducted it in op- 
position to the Jackson administration and 
the nullification doctrines of Calhoun. Wt 
became an adroit party manager, and was 
instrumental in promoting the nominations 
of Harrison, Taylor and Scott for the pres- 
idency. In 1856 and in i860 he threw his 
support to W. H. Seward, but when defeat- 
ed in his object, he gave cordial support to 



92 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



Fremont and Lincoln. Mr. Lincoln pre- 
v? ; led upon him to visit the various capitals 
of Europe, where he proved a valuable aid 
tc the administration in moulding the opin- 
ions of the statesmen of that continent 
favorable to the cause of the Union. 

Mr. Weed's connection with the ' ' Even- 
ing Journal " was severed in 1862, when he 
settled in New York, and for a time edited 
the " Commercial Advertiser." In 1868 he 
retired from active life. His " Letters from 
Europe and the West Indies," published in 
1 866, together with some interesting ' ' Rem- 
iniscences, " published in the "Atlantic 
Monthly," in 1870, an autobiography, and 
portions of an extensive correspondence will 
be of great value to writers of the political 
history of the United States. Mr. Weed 
died in New York, November 22, 1882. 



WILLIAM COLLINS WHITNEY, 
one of the prominent Democratic 
politicians of the country and ex-secretary of 
the navy, was born July 5th, 1841, at Con- 
way, Massachusetts, and received his edu- 
cation at Williston Seminary, East Hamp- 
ton, Massachusetts. Later he attended 
Yale College, where he graduated in 1863, 
and entered the Harvard Law School, which 
he left in 1864. Beginning practice in New 
York city, he soon gained a reputation as 
an able lawyer. He made his first appear- 
ance in public affairs in 1871, when he was 
active in organizing a young men's Demo- 
cratic club. In 1872 he was the recognized 
leader of the county Democracy and in 1875 
was appointed corporation counsel for the 
city of New York. He resigned the office, 
1882, to attend to personal interests and on 
March 5, 1885, he was appointed secretary 
of the navy by President Cleveland. Under 
his administration the navy of the United 
States rapidly rose in rank among the navies 



of the world. When he retired from office 
in 1889, the vessels of the United States 
navy designed and contracted for by him 
were five double-turreted monitors, two 
new armor-clads, the dynamite cruiser "Ve- 
suvius," and five unarmored steel and iron 
cruisers. 

Mr. Whitney was the leader of the 
Cleveland forces in the national Democratic 
convention of 1892. 



EDWIN FORREST, the first and great- 
est American tragedian, was born in 
Philadelphia in 1806. His father was a 
tradesman, and some accounts state that he 
had marked out a mercantile career for his 
son, Edwin, while others claim that he had 
intended him for the ministry. His wonder- 
ful memory, his powers of mimicry and his 
strong musical voice, however, attracted at- 
tention before he was eleven years old, and 
at that age he made his first appearance on 
the stage. The costume in which he appeared 
was so ridiculous that he left the stage in a 
fit of anger amid a roar of laughter from 
the audience. This did not discourage him, 
however, and at the age of fourteen, after 
some preliminary training in elocution, he 
appeared again, this time as Young Norvel, 
and gave indications of future greatness. 
Up to 1826 he played entirely with strolling 
companies through the south and west, but 
at that time he obtained an engagement at 
the Bowery Theater in New York. From 
that time his fortune was made. His man- 
ager paid him $40 per night, and it is stated 
that he loaned Forrest to other houses from 
time to time at $200 per night. His great 
successes were Virginias, Damon, Othello. 
Coriolanus, William Tell, Spartacus and 
Lear. He made his first appearance in 
London in 1836, and his success was un- 
questioned from the start. In 1845, on his 



COMPENDIUM OF BlOGRAPIIT, 



93 



second appearance in London, he became 
involved in a bitter rivalry with the great 
English actor, Macready, who had visited 
America two years before. The result was 
that Forrest was hissed from the stage, and 
it was charged that Macready had instigated 
the plot. Forrest's resentment was so bitter 
that he himself openly hissed Macready 
from his box a few nights later. In 1848 
Macready again visited America at a time 
when American admiration and enthusiasm 
for Forrest had reached its height. Macready 
undertook to play at Astor Place Opera 
House in May, 1S49, but was hooted off the 
stage. A few nights later Macready made a 
second attempt to play at the same house, 
this time under police protection. The house 
was filled with Macready 's friends, but the vio- 
olence of the mob outside stopped the play, 
and the actor barely escaped with his life. 
Upon reading the riot act the police and 
troops were assaulted with stones. The 
troops replied, first with blank cartridges, 
and then a volley of lead dispersed the 
mob, leaving thirty men dead or seriously 
wounded. 

After this incident Forrest's popularity 
waned, until in 1855 he retired from the 
stage. He re-appeared in i860, however, 
and probably the most remunerative period 
of his life was between that date and the 
close of the Civil war. His last appearance 
on the stage was at the Globe Theatre, 
Boston, in Richelieu, in April, 1872, his 
death occurring December 12 of that year. 



NOAH PORTER, D. D., LL. D., was 
one of the most noted educators, au- 
thors and scientific writers of the United 
States. He was born December 14, 181 1, 
at Farmington, Connecticut, graduated at 
Yale College in 1831, and was master of 
Hopkins Grammar School at New Haven in 



1831-33. During 1833-35 he was a tutor 
at Yale, and at the same time was pursuing 
his theological studies, and became pastor 
of the Congregational church at New Mil- 
ford, Connecticut, in April, 1836. Dr. 
Porter removed to Springfield, Massachu- 
setts, in 1843, and was chosen professor of 
metaphysics and moral philosophy at Yale 
in 1846. He spent a year in Germany in 
the study of modern metaphysics in 1853- 
54, and in 1 87 1 he was elected president of 
Yale College. He resigned the presidency 
in 1885, but still remained professor of met- 
aphysics and moral philosophy. He was 
the author of a number of works, among 
which are the following: " Historical Es- 
say," written in commemorationof the200th 
aniversary of the settlement of the town of 
Farmington; " Educational System of the 
Jesuits Compared;" "The Human Intel- 
lect," with an introduction upon psychology 
and the soul; " Books and Reading;" 
"American Colleges and the American Pub- 
lic;" " Elementsof Intellectual Philosophy;" 
" The Science of Nature versus the Science 
of Man;" "Science and Sentiment;" "Ele- 
ments of Moral Science." Dr. Porter was 
the principal editor of the revised edition of 
Webster's Dictionary in 1864, and con- 
tributed largely to religious reviews and 
periodicals. Dr. Porter's death occurred 
March 4, 1892, at New Haven, Connecticut. 



JOHN TYLER, tenth president of the 
United States, was born in Charles City 
county, Virginia, March 29, 1790, ahd was 
the son of Judge John Tyler, one of the 
most distinguished men of his day. 

When but twelve years of age young 
John Tyler entered William and Mary Col- 
lege, graduating from there in 1806. He 
took up the study of law and was admitted 
to the bar in 1809, when but nineteen years 



94 



COMPEXDIL'M OF BIOGRAPHY. 



of age. On attaining his majority in 1811 
he was elected a member of the state legis- 
lature, and for five years held that position 
by the almost unanimous vote of his county. 
He was elected to congress in 18 16, and 
served in that body for four years, after 
which for two years he represented his dis- 
trict again in the legislature of the state. 
While in congress, he opposed the United 
States bank, the protective policy and in- 
ternal improvements by the United States 
government. 1825 saw Mr. Tyler governor 
of Virginia, but in 1827 he was chosen 
member of the United States senate, and 
held that office for nine years. He therein 
opposed the administration of Adams and 
the tariff bill of 1828, sympathized with the 
nullifrers of South Carolina and was the 
only senator who voted against the Force 
bill lor the suppression of that state's insip- 
ient rebellion. He resigned his position as 
senator on account of a disagreement with 
the legislature of his state in relation to his 
censuring President Jackson. He retired to 
Williamsburg, Virginia, but being regarded 
as a martyr by the Whigs, whom, hereto- 
fore, he had always opposed, was supported 
by many of that party for the vice-presi- 
dency in 1836. He sat in the Virginia leg- 
islature as a Whig in 1839-40, and was a 
delegate to the convention of that party in 
1 9. This national convention nominated 
him for the second place on the ticket with 
General William H. H. Harrison, and he 
was elected vice-president in November, 
1 840. President Harrison dying one month 
after his inauguration, he was succeeded by 
John Tyler. He retained the cabinet chosen 
by his predecessor, and for a time moved in 
harmony with the Whig party. He finally 
instructed the secretary of the treasury, 
Thomas Ewing, to submit to congress a bill 
for the incorporation of a fiscal bank of the 



United States, which was passed by con- 
gress, but vetoed by the president on ac- 
count of some amendments he considered 
unconstitutional. For this and other meas- 
ures he was accused of treachery to his 
party, and deserted by his whole cabinet, 
except Daniel Webs' er. Things grew worse 
until he was abandoned by the Whig party 
formally, when Mr. Webster resigned. He 
was nominated at Baltimore, in May, 1844, 
at the Democratic convention, as their pres- 
idential candidate, but withdrew from the 
canvass, as he saw he had not succeed- 
ed in gaining the confidence of his old 
party. He then retired from politics until 
February, 1861, when he was made presi- 
dent of the abortive peace congress, which 
met in Washington. He shortly after re- 
nounced his allegiance to the United States 
and was elected a member of the Confeder- 
ate congress. He died at Richmond, Janu- 
ary 17, 1862. 

Mr. Tyler married, in 18 13, Miss Letitia 
Christian, who died in 1842 at Washington. 
June 26, 1844, he contracted a second mar- 
riage, with Miss Julia Gardner, of New York. 



COLLIS POTTER HUNTINGTON, 
one of the great men of his time and 
who has left his impress upon the history of 
our national development, was born October 
22, 1 82 1, at Harwinton, Connecticut. 
He received a common-school education 
and at the age of fourteen his spirit of get- 
ting along in the world mastered his educa- 
tional propensities and his father's objec- 
tions and he left school. He went to Cali- 
fornia in the early days and had opportunities 
which be handled masterfully. Others had 
the same opportunities but they did not have 
his brains nor his energy, and it was he who 
overcame obstacles and reaped the reward 
of his genius. Transcontinental railways 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



95 



were inevitable, but the realization of this 
masterful achievement would have been de- 
layed to a much later day if there had been 
no Huntington. He associated himself with 
Messrs. Mark Hopkins, Leland Stanford, 
and Charles Crocker, and they furnished the 
money necessary for a survey across the 
Sierra Nevadas, secured a charter for the 
road, and raised, with the government's aid, 
money enough to construct and equip that 
railway, which at the time of its completion 
was a marvel of engineering and one of the 
wonders of the world. Mr. Huntington be- 
came president of the Southern Pacific rail- 
road, vice-president of the Central Pacific; 
trustee of the Atlantic and Pacific Telegraph 
Company, and a director of the Occidental 
and Oriental Steamship Company, besides 
being identified with many other business 
enterprises of vast importance. 



GEORGE A. CUSTER, a famous In- 
dian fighter, was born in Ohio in 1840. 
He graduated at West Point in 1861, an- 
served in the Civil war; was at Bull Run id 
1861, and was in the Peninsular campaign, 
being one of General McClellan's aides-de, 
camp. He fought in the battles of South 
Mountain and Antietam in 1863, and was 
with General Stoneman on his famous 
cavalry raid. He was engaged in the battle 
of Gettysburg, and was there made brevet- 
major. In 1863 was appointed brigadier- 
general of volunteers. General Custer was 
in many skirmishes in central Virginia in 
1863-64, and was present at the following 
battles of the Richmond campaign: Wil- 
derness, Todd's Tavern, Yellow Tavern, where 
he wasbrevetted lieutenant-colonel; Meadow 
Bridge, Haw's Shop, Cold Harbor, Trevil- 
lian Station. In the Shenandoah Valley 
1 864-65 he was brevetted colonel at Opequan 
Creek, and at Cedar Creek he was made 



brevet major-general for gallant conduct 
during the engagement. General Custer 
was in command of a cavalry division in the 
pursuit of Lee's army in 1865, and fought 
at Dinwiddie Court House, Five Forks, 
where he was made brevet brigadier-general ; 
Sailors Creek and Appomattox, where he 
gained additional honors and was made 
brevet major-general, and was given the 
command of the cavalry in the military 
division of the southwest and Gulf, in 1865. 
After the establishment of peace he went 
west on frontier duty and performed gallant 
and valuable service in the troubles with the 
Indians. He was killed in the massacre on 
the Little Big Horn river, South Dakota, 
June 25, 1876. 



DANIEL WOLSEY VOORHEES, cel- 
brated as " The Tall Sycamore of the 
Wabash," was born September 26, 1827, 
in Butler county, Ohio. When he was two 
months old his parents removed to Fount- 
ain county, Indiana. He grew to manhood 
on a farm, engaged in all the arduous work 
pertaining to rural life. In 1845 he entered 
the Indiana Asbury University, now the De 
Pauw, from which he graduated in 1849. 
He took up the study of law at Crawfords- 
ville, and in 185 1 began the practice of his 
profession at Covington, Fountain county, 
Indiana. He became a law partner of 
United States Senator Hannegan, of Indi- 
ana, in 1852, and in 1856 he was an unsuc- 
cessful candidate for congress. In the fol- 
lowing year he took up his residence in Terre 
Haute, Indiana. He was United States 
district attorney for Indiana from 1857 until 
1 86 1, and he had during this period been 
elected to congress, in i860. Mr. Voorhees 
was re-elected to congress in 1862 and 1864, 
but he was unsuccessful in the election of 
1866. However, he was returned to con- 



90 



COMPEX/)ir.M OF BIOGRAPHIC 



gress in 1868, where he remained until 1874, 
having been re-elected twice. In 1877 he 
was appointed United States senator from 
Indiana to fill a vacancy caused by the death 
of O. P. Morton, and at the end of the term 
was elected for the ensuing term, being re- 
elected in 1885 and in 1891 to the same of- 
fice. He served with distinction on many 
of the committees, and took a very prom- 
inent part in the discussion of all the im- 
portant legislation of his time. His death 
occurred in August, 189 . 



ALEXANDER GRAHAM BELL, fa- 
mous as one of the inventors of the tele- 
phone, was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, 
March 3rd, 1847. He received his early 
education in the high school and later he 
attended the university, and was specially 
trained to follow his grandfather's profes- 
sion, that of removing impediments of 
speech. He emigrated to the United States 
in 1872, and introduced into this country 
his father's invention of visible speech in the 
institutions for deaf-mutes. Later he was 
appointed professor of vocal physiology in 
the Boston University. He wcrked for 
many years during his leisure hours on his 
telephonic discovery, and finally perfected 
it and exhibited it publicly, before it had 
reached the high state of perfection to which 
he brought it. His first exhibition of it was 
at the Centennial Exhibition that was held 
in Philadelphia in 1876. Its success is now- 
established throughout the civilized world. 
In 1882 Prof. Bell received a diploma and 
the decoration of the Legion of Honor from 
the Academy of Sciences of France. 



WILLIAM HICKLING PRESCOTT, 
the justly celebrated historian and 
author, was a native of Salem, Massachu- 
setts, and was born May 4, 1796. He was 



the son of Judge William Prescott and the 
grandson of the hero of Bunker Hill, Colonel 
William Prescott. 

Our subject in 1S08 removed with the 
family to Boston, in the schools of which 
city he received his early education. He 
entered Harvard College as a sophomore in 
181 1, having been prepared at the private 
classical college of Rev. Dr. J. S. J. Gardi- 
jner. The following year he received an in- 
ury in his left eye which made study 
through life a matter of difficulty. He 
graduated in 18 14 with high honors in the 
classics and belle lettres. He spent several 
months on the Azores Islands, and later 
visited England, France and Italy, return- 
ing home in 18 17. In June, 181 8, he 
founded a social and literary club at Boston 
for which he edited "The Club Room," a 
periodical doomed to but a short life. May 
4, 1820, he married Miss Susan Amorv. 
He devoted several years after that event to 
a thorough study of ancient and modern 
history and literature. As the fruits of his 
labors he published several well written 
essays upon French and Italian poetry and 
romance in the " North American Review." 
January 19, 1826, he decided to take up his 
first great historical work, the " History of 
the Reign of Ferdinand and Isabella." To 
this he gave the labor of ten years, publish- 
ing the same December 25, 1837. Although 
placed at the head of all American authors, 
so diffident was Prescott of his literary merit 
that although he had four copies of this 
work printed for his own convenience, he 
hesitated a long time before giving it to the 
public, and it was only by the solicitation of 
friends, especially of that talented Spanish 
scholar, George Ticknor, that he was in- 
duced to do so. Soon the volumes were 
translated into French, Italian, Dutch and 
German, and the work was recognized 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



97 



throughout the world as one of the most 
meritorious of historical compositions. In 
1843 he published the "Conquest of Mexi- 
co," and in 1847 the " Conquest of Peru." 
Two years later there came from his pen a 
volume of ' ' Biographical and Critical Mis- 
cellanies." Going abroad in the summer of 
1850, he was received with great distinction 
in the literary circles of London, Edinburgh, 
Paris, Antwerp and Brussels. Oxford Uni- 
versity conferred the degree of D. C. L. 
upon him. In 1855 he issued two volumes 
of his "History of the Reign of Philip the 
Second," and a third in 1858. In the 
meantime he edited Robertson's "Charles 
the Fifth," adding a history of the life of 
that monarch after his abdication. Death 
cut short his work on the remaining volumes 
of " Philip the Second," coming to him at 
Boston, Massachusetts, May 28, 1859. 



OLIVER HAZARD PERRY, a noted 
American commodore, was born in 
South Kingston, Rhode Island, August 23, 
1785. He saw his first service as a mid- 
shipman in the United States navy in April, 
1799. He cruised with his father, Captain 
Christopher Raymond Perry, in the West In- 
dies for about two years. In 1 804 he was 
in the war against Tripoli, and was made 
lieutenant in 1807. At the openingof hostili- 
ties with Great Britain in 1 8 1 2 he was given 
command of a fleet of gunboats on the At- 
lantic coast. At his request he was trans- 
ferred, a year later, to Lake Ontario, where 
he served under Commodore Chauncey, and 
took an active part in the attack on Fort 
George. He was ordered to fit out a squad- 
ron on Lake Erie, which he did, building 
most of his vessels from the forests along 
the shore, and by the summer of 1 8 1 3 he had 
a fleet of nine vessels at Presque Isle, now 
Erie, Pennsylvania September 10th he 



attacked and captured the British fleet near 
Put-in-Bay, thus clearing the lake of hostile 
ships. His famous dispatch is part of his 
fame, " We have met the enemy, and they 
are ours." He co-operated with Gen. Har- 
rison, and the success of the campaign in 
the northwest was largely due to his victory. 
The next year he was transferred to the Po- 
tomac, and assisted in the defense of Balti- 
more. After the war he was in constant 
service with the various squadrons in cruising 
in all parts of the world. He died of yellow 
fever on the Island of Trinidad, August 23, 
1 8 19. His remains were conveyed to New- 
port, and buried there, and an imposing 
obelisk was erected to his memory by the 
State of Rhode Island. A bronze statue 
was also erected in his honor, the unveiling 
taking place in 1885. 



JOHN PAUL JONES, though a native 
of Scotland, was one of America's most 
noted fighters during the Revolutionary war. 
He was born July 6, 1747. His father was 
a gardener, but the young man soon be- 
came interested in a seafaring life and at 
the age of twelve he was apprenticed to a 
sea captain engaged in the American trade. 
His first voyage landed him in Virginia, 
where he had a brother who had settled 
there several years prior. The failure of 
the captain released young Jones from his 
apprenticeship bonds, and he was engaged 
as third mate of a vessel engaged in the 
slave trade. He abandoned this trade after 
a few years, from his own sense of disgrace. 
He took passage from Jamaica for Scotland 
in 1768, and on the voyage both the captain 
and the mate died and he was compelled to 
take command of the vessel for the re- 
mainder of the voyage. He soon after 
became master of the vessel. He returned 
to Virginia about 1773 to settle up the estate 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHT. 



of his brother, and at this time added the 
name "Jones," having previously been 
known as John Paul. He settled down in 
Virginia, but when the war broke out in 
1775 he offered his services to congress and 
was appointed senior lieutenant of the flag- 
ship "Alfred," on which he hoisted the 
American flag with his own hands, the first 
vessel that had ever carried a flag of the 
new nation. He was afterward appointed 
to the command of the "Alfred," and later 
of the "Providence," in each of which ves- 
sels he did good service, as also in the 
" Ranger," to the command of which he 
was later appointed. The fight that made 
him famous, however, was that in which he 
captured the " Serapis," off the coast of 
Scotland. He was then in command of the 
"Bon Homme Richard," which had been 
fitted out for him by the French government 
and named by Jones in honor of Benjamin 
Franklin, or " Good Man Richard," Frank- 
lin being author of the publication known 
as " Poor Richard's Almanac." The fight 
between the " Richard" and the "Serapis" 
lasted three hours, all of which time the 
vessels were at close range, and most of the 
time in actual contact. Jones' vessel was 
on fire several times, and early in the en- 
gagement two of his guns bursted, rendering 
the battery useless. Also an envious officer 
of the Alliance, one of Jones' own fleet, 
opened fire upon the " Richard " at a crit- 
ical time, completely disabling the vessel. 
Jones continued the fight, in spite of coun- 
sels to surrender, and after dark the " Ser- 
apis " struck her colors, and was hastily 
boarded by Jones and his crew, while the 
"Richard" sank, bows first, after the 
wounded had been taken on board the 
"Serapis." Most of the other vessels of 
the fleet of which the " Serapis" was con- 
voy, surrendered, and were taken with the 



"Serapis" to France, where Jones was 
received with greatest honors, and the king 
presented him with an elegant sword and 
the cross of the Order of Military Merit. 
Congress gave him a vote of thanks and 
made him commander of a new ship, the 
"America," but the vessel was afterward 
given to France and Jones never saw active 
sea service again. He came to America again, 
in 1787, after the close of the war, and was 
voted a gold medal by congress. He went to 
Russia and was appointed rear-admiral and 
rendered service of value against the Turks, 
but on account of personal enmity of the fav- 
orites of the emperor he was retired on a pen- 
sion. Failing to collect this, he returned to 
France, where he died, July 18, 1792. 



THOMAS MORAN, the well-known 
painter of Rocky Mountain scenery, 
was born in Lancashire, England, in 1837. 
He came to America when a child, and 
showing artistic tastes, he was apprenticed 
to a wood engraver in Philadelphia. Three 
years later he began landscape painting, and 
his style soon began to exhibit signs of genius. 
His first works were water-colors, and 
though without an instructor he began the 
use of oils, he soon found it necessary to 
visit Europe, where he gave particular at- 
tention to the works of Turner. He joined 
the Yellowstone Park exploring expedition 
and visited the Rocky Mountains in 1871 
and again in 1873, making numerous 
sketches of the scenery. The most note- 
worthy results were his "Grand Canon of 
the Yellowstone," and " The Chasm of the 
Colorado," which were purchased by con- 
gress at $10,000 each, the first of which is 
undoubtedly the finest landscape painting 
produced in this country. Mr. Moran has 
subordinated art to nature, and the subjects 
he has chosen leave little ground for fault 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



101 



finding on thai account, " rhe Mountain 
ol the Holy Cross, " " Th<- * rrovi Wen 
God's Firsl Temples," " Phe Cliffs ol Green 
River," "The Children ol the Mountain," 
•• rhe Ripening 61 the l eaf," and others 
have given him additional tame, and while 
they do nol equal in grandeui the firsl 
mentioned, in many respects from an art 
ti< standpoinl thej are superioi 

LEI anh STANFORD was one ol the 
greatest men <>i the Pat iflt t oasl and 
also had ;» national reputation, He was 
born March <>. is • |. in Ubanj county, Nev 
York, and passed his early life on his 
lather's fai m, 1 i<- attended the lot ii 
schools oi tin- count] and -it the age ol 
twenty began the studj ol law, He 
entered the lav office ol Wheaton, Doolittle 
.ui,i l ladle) . .it Aikim .in i :- 1 >,. .111,1 .i i,w 
years later he moved to Port Washington, 
Wisconsin, where ho practiced law foui 
\ ears v* hIi model ate succt ■ in t8j3 Mi 
Stanford determined to push furthei west, 
and, accordingly wenl to California, where 
three >'i his brothers were established In 
business in tin 1 mining town-- fhej took 
I el. iii.i into partnership, giving him • harj i 
oi .i branch store al Michigan Bluff, in 
Placer county Phere ho developed great 
business ability and foui years latei started 
.i nno antile house ol hia own in San Fran 
cisco, which soon became one ol the mosl 
substantial houses on the coast. On the 
formation of the Republican party he Intel 
ested himsell in pohl ics, and in 1 86o w as 
Benl as -i delegate to the convention thai 
nominated Abraham I im oln in the 
autumn ol 1 86 1 he was elected, in an im 
mense majoi it \ . govei noi ol I -alifoi nis 
Prioi ^^ his election as governoi he had 
been chosen president ol the newlj orgs 
in .I'd Central Pacific Railroad Company, 



.iii.l aftei leaving the exei utive chaii he de 
voted .ill ol his time to the constru< tion ol 
the Pacific end o( the transcontinental rail 
w.i\ Maj to, iSoo, Mi Stanford drovt 
the last spike ol the Central Pat iflc road, 
thus completing the route across the conti 
Hint I te w as also president ol the Occi 
dental and Oriental Steamship Company 
He had but one son, who died ol typhoid 
fe\ ei . and as .» monument to his i hild iio 
founded the university which bears his -on . 
name, Leland Stanford, funior, University 
Mi Stanford ga\ e to this universit j i ighty 
three thousand acres ol land, the estimated 
value ol which is $8,ooo,ooo, and the entire 
endowment is $ io,i 100,000 In t88j Mi 
Stanford was elected United States senator 
as .i Republit an, to sut ceed | 1 Parlej . a 
Democrat, and was re elected in 1891. Hia 
death o< 1 ui red fune to, 1894, ;it Palo Alto, 
California 

§1 1 nil n DECATUR, a famous com 
modore in the l 'mi 01 1 States navy, was 
Inn n m M.11 \ l.in.l in 1 o II,- entered the 
11. i\ .ii sei \ n o in 1 981 In 1 80 1. w lion the 
Aiii.-i 1, .in vessel Philadelphia had been 1 ^ 
!■ i,,iiii,i and captured in the harboi ol tYip 
nli, Decatur, .it the I10.nl ol a low men, 
boarded hei and inn ned her in 1 he fat e ol 
tho guns from the citj defenBi P01 this 
daring deed he w .0. made 1 aptain He v as 
given command ol the frigate United States 
.11 the bi eaking out ol the w ai ><i 1 8 1 \ and 
in Octobei ol t li.it yeai he 1 apt tu oil 1 he 
British frigate Macedonian, and was re 
warded w itli .1 gold medal bj 1 ongi 1 is At 
ter tin' ' lose ol the w ai he vt .is •out as 1 om 
in, in, 1, 1 ,,| ;i fleet oi tin \ 1 els to 1 hastise 
the dey ol Algiers, who was preying upon 
Aiiiii h .hi , ommert e v\ ■ < ii tmpunit \ and di 
manding i> ibute and 1 ansom foi the relt a 11 
,,f Am, 1 1, .in 1 iti ens ■ aptured I >< 1 atui 



102 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



captured a number of Algerian vessels, and 
compelled the dey to sue for peace. He 
was noted for his daring and intrepidity, 
and his coolness in the face of danger, and 
helped to bring the United States navy into 
favor with the people and congress as a 
means of defense and offense in time of 
He was killed in a duel by Commo- 



war. 



dore Barron, March 12, 1820. 



JAMES KNOX POLK, the eleventh 
president of the United States, 1845 to 
1849, was born November 2, 1795, m Meck- 
lenburg county, North Carolina, and was 
the eldest child of a family of six sons. He 
removed with his father to the Valley of the 
Duck River, in Tennessee, in 1806. He 
attended the common schools and became 
very proficient in the lower branches of 
education, and supplemented this with 
a course in the Murfreesboro Academy, 
which he entered in 18 13 and in the autumn 
of 1 8 1 5 he became a student in the sopho- 
more class of the University of North Caro- 
lina, at Chapel Hill, and was graduated in 
181 8. He then spent a short time in re- 
cuperating his health and then proceeded to 
Nashville, Tennessee, where he took up the 
study of law in the office of Felix Grundy. 
After the completion of his law studies he 
was admitted to the bar and removed to 
Columbia, Maury county, Tennessee, and 
started in the active practice of his profes- 
sion. Mr. Polk was a Jeffersonian "Re- 
publican " and in 1823 he was elected to the 
legislature of Tennessee. He was a strict 
constructionist and did not believe that the 
general government had the power to carry 
on internal improvements in the states, but 
deemed it important that it should have that 
power, and wanted the constitution amended 
to that effect. But later on he became 
alarmed iest the general government might 



become strong enough to abolish slavery 
and therefore gave his whole support to the 
" State's Rights" movement, and endeavored 
to check the centralization of power in the 
general government. Mr. Polk was chosen 
a member of congress in 1825, and held that 
office until 1839. He then withdrew, as he 
was the successful gubernatorial candidate 
of his state. He had become a man of 
great influence in the house, and, as the 
leader of the Jackson party in that body, 
weilded great influence in the election of 
General Jackson to the presidency. He 
sustained the president in all his measures 
and still remained in the house after Gen- 
eral Jackson had been succeeded by Martin 
Van Buren. He was speaker of the house 
during five sessions of congress. He was 
elected governor of Tennessee by a large 
majority and took the oath of office at Nash- 
ville, October 4, 1839. He was a candidate 
for re-election but was defeated by Governor 
Jones, the Whig candidate. In 1844 the 
most prominent question in the election was 
the annexation of Texas, and as Mr. Polk 
was the avowed champion of this cause he 
was nominated for president by the pro- 
slavery wing of the democratic party, was 
elected by a large majority, and was inaug- 
urated March 4, 1845. President Polk 
formed a very able cabinet, consisting of 
James Buchanan, Robert J. Walker, Will- 
iam L. Marcy, George Bancroft, Cave John- 
son, and John Y. Mason. The dispute re- 
garding the Oregon boundary was settled 
during his term of office and a new depart- 
ment was added to the list of cabinet po- 
sitions, that of the Interior. The low tariff 
bill of 1846 was carried and the financial 
system of the country was reorganized. It 
was also during President Polk's term that 
the Mexican war was successfully conducted, 
which resulted in the acquisition of Califor- 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



103 



nia and New Mexico. Mr. Polk retired from 
the presidency March 4, 1849, after having 
declined a re-nomination, and was succeeded 
by General Zachary Taylor, the hero of the 
Mexican war. Mr. Polk retired to private 
life, to his home in Nashville, where he died 
at the age of fifty-four on June 9, 1849. 



ANNA DICKINSON (Anna Elizabeth 
Dickinson), a noted lecturer and pub- 
lic speaker, was born at Philadelphia, Oc- 
tober 28, 1842. Her parents were Quakers, 
and she was educated at the Friends' free 
schools in her native city. She early man- 
ifested an inclination toward elocution and 
public speaking, and when, at the age of 18, 
she found an opportunity to appear before 
a national assemblage for the discussion of 
woman's rights, she at once established her 
reputation as a public speaker. From i860 
to the close of the war and during the ex- 
citing period of reconstruction, she was one 
of the most noted and influential speakers 
before the American public, and her popu- 
larity was unequaled by that of any of her 
sex. A few weeks after the defeat and 
death of Colonel Baker at Ball's Bluff, Anna 
Dickinson, lecturing in New York, made 
the remarkable assertion, " Not the incom- 
petency of Colonel Baker, but the treachery 
of General McClellan caused the disaster at 
Ball's Bluff." She was hissed and hooted 
off the stage. A year later, at the same 
hall and with much the same class of audi- 
tors, she repeated the identical words, and 
the applause was so great and so long con- 
tinued that it was impossible to go on with 
her lecture for more than half an hour. The 
change of sentiment had been wrought by 
the reverses and dismissal of McClellan and 
his ambition to succeed Mr. Lincoln as presi- 
dent. 

Ten years after the close of the war, Anna 



Dickinson was not heard of on the lec- 
ture platform, and about that time she made 
an attempt to enter the dramatic profession, 
but after appearing a number of times in dif- 
ferent plays she was pronounced a failure. 



ROBERT J. BURDETTE.— Some per- 
sonal characteristics of Mr. Burdette 
were quaintly given by himself in the follow- 
ing words: "Politics? Republican after 
the strictest sect. Religion ? Baptist. Per- 
sonal appearance ? Below medium height, 
and weigh one hundred and thirty-five 
pounds, no shillings and no pence. Rich ? 
Not enough to own a yacht. Favorite read- 
ing? Poetry and history — know Longfellow 
by heart, almost. Write for magizines ? 
Have more ' declined with thanks ' letters 
than would fill a trunk. Never able to get 
into a magazine with a line. Care about it? 
Mad as thunder. Think about starting a 
magazine and rejecting everbody's articles 
except my own." Mr. Burdette was born 
at Greensborough, Pennsylvania, in 1844. 
He served through the war of the rebellion, 
under General Banks "on an excursion 
ticket" as he felicitously described it, "good 
both ways, conquering in one direction and 
running in the other, pay going on just the 
same." He entered into journalism by the 
gateway of New York correspondence for 
the "Peoria Transcript," and in 1874 went 
on the "Burlington Hawkeye" of which he 
became the managing editor, and the work 
that he did on this paper made both him- 
self and the paper famous in the world of 
humor. Mr. Burdette married in 1870, 
and his wife, whom he called "Her Little 
Serene Highness," was to him a guiding 
light until the day of her death, and it was 
probably the unconscious pathos with which 
he described her in his work that broke the 
barriers that had kept him out of the maga- 



104 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHr. 



zines and secured him the acceptance of his 
"Confessions" by Lippincott some years 
ago, and brought him substantial fame and 
recognition in the literary world. 



WILLIAM DEAN HOWELLS, one 
of the leading novelists of the present 
century and author of a number of works 
that gained for him a place in the hearts of 
the people, was born March I, 1837, at 
Martinsville, Belmont county, Ohio. At 
the age of three years he accompanied his 
father, who was a printer, to Hamilton, 
Ohio, where he learned the printer's trade. 
Later he was engaged on the editorial staff 
of the " Cincinnati Gazette " and the " Ohio 
State Journal." During 1S61-65 he was 
the United States consul at Venice, and 
from 1 87 1 to 1878 he was the editor-in- 
chief of the "Atlantic Monthly.'' As a 
writer he became one of the most fertile 
and readable of authors and a pleasing poet. 
In 1885 he became connected with " Har- 
per's Magazine. " Mr. Howells was author 
of the list of books that we give below: 
"Venetian Life," " Italian Journeys," "No 
Love Lost," " Suburban Sketches," "Their 
Wedding Journey," "A Chance Acquaint- 
ance," "A Foregone Conclusion," "Dr. 
Breen's Practice," "A Modern Instance," 
"The Rise of Silas Lapham," "Tuscan 
Cities," "Indian Summer," besides many 
others. He also wrote the " Poem of Two 
Friends," with J. J. Piatt in i860, and 
some minor dramas: "The Drawing 
Room Car," "The Sleeping Car," etc., 
that are full of exqusite humor and elegant 
dialogue. 

JAMES RUSSELL LOWELL was a son 
of the Rev. Charles Lowell, and was born 
at Cambridge, Massachusetts, February 22, 
1 8 19. He graduated at Harvard College in 



1838 as class poet, and went to Harvard 
Law School, from which he was graduated 
in 1840, and commenced the practice of his 
profession in Boston, but soon gave his un- 
divided attention to literary labors. Mr. 
Lowell printed, in 1841, a small volume of 
poems entitled " A Year's Life," edited with 
Robert Carter; in 1843, " The Pioneer, " a 
literary and critical magazine (monthly), and 
in 1848 another book of poems, that con- 
tained several directed against slavery. He 
published in 1844 a volume of "Poems" 
and in 1845 " Conversations on Some 
of the Old Poets," "The Vision of Sir 
Launfal," "A Fable for Critics, " and "The 
Bigelow Papers," the lattei satirical es- 
says in dialect poetry directed against 
slavery and the war with Mexico. In 
1851-52 he traveled in Europe and re- 
sided in Italy for a considerable time, and 
delivered in 1854-55 a course of lectures on 
the British poets, before the Lowell Insti- 
tute, Boston. Mr. Lowell succeeded Long- 
fellow in January, 1855, as professor of 
modern languages and literature at Harvard 
College, and spent another year in Emope 
qualifying himself for that post. He edited 
the " Atlantic Monthly " from 1857 to 1862, 
and the "North American Review" from 
1863 until 1872. From 1864 to 1870 he 
published the following works: "Fireside 
Travels," " Under the Willows," "The 
Commemoration Ode," in honor of the 
alumni of Harvard who had fallen in the 
Civil war; "The Cathedral," two volumes 
of essays; "Among My Books" and "My 
Study Windows," and in 1867 he published 
a new series of the " Bigelow Papers." He 
traveled extensively in Europe in 1872-74, 
and received in person the degree of D. C. 
L. at Oxford and that of LL. D. at the 
University of Cambridge, England. He 
was also interested in political life and held 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



105 



many important offices. He was United 
States minister to Spain in 1877 and was 
also minister to England in 1880-85. On 
January 2, 1S84, he was elected lord rector 
of St. Andrew University in Glasgow, Scot- 
land, but soon after he resigned the same. 
Mr. Lowell's works enjoy great popularity 
in the United States and England. He 
died August 12, 1S91. 



JOSEPH HENRY, one of America's 
greatest scientists, was born at Albany, 
New York, December 17, 1797. He was 
educated in the common schools of the city 
and graduated from the Albany Academy, 
where he became a professor of mathemat- 
ics in 1826. In 1827 he commenced a 
course of investigation, which he continued 
for a number of years, and the results pro- 
duced had great effect on the scientific world. 
The first success was achieved by producing 
the electric magnet, and he next proved the 
possibility of exciting magnetic energy at a 
distance, and it was the invention of Pro- 
fessor Henry's intensity magnet that first 
made the invention of electric telegraph a 
possibility. He made a statement regarding 
the practicability of applying the intensity 
magnet to telegraphic uses, in his article to 
the "American Journal of Science " in 1831. 
During the same year he produced the first 
mechanical contrivance ever invented for 
maintaining continuous motion by means of 
electro-magnetism, and he also contrived a 
machine by which signals could be made at 
a distance by the use of his electro-magnet, 
the signals being produced by a lever strik- 
ing on a bell. Some of his electro-magnets 
were of great power, one carried over a ton 
and another not less than three thousand six 
hundred pounds. In 1832 he discovered 
that secondary currents could be produced 
in a long conductor by the induction of the 



primary current upon itself, and also in the 
same year he produced a spark by means of 
a purely magnetic induction. Professor 
Henry was elected, in 1832, professor of nat- 
ural philosophy in the College of New Jer- 
sey, and in his earliest lectures at Princeton, 
demonstrated the feasibility of the electric 
telegraph. He visited Europe in 1837, and 
while there he had an interview with Pro- 
fessor Wheatstone, the inventor of the 
needle magnetic telegraph. In 1846 he was 
elected secretary of the Smithsonian Insti- 
tution, being the first incumbent in that office, 
which he held until his death. Professor 
Henry was elected president of the Ameri- 
can Association for the Advancement of 
Science, in 1849, and of the National 
Academy of Sciences. He was made chair- 
man of the lighthouse board of the United 
States in 1871 and held that position up to 
the time of his death. He received the 
honorary degree of doctor of laws from 
Union College in 1829, and from Harvard 
University in 1851, and his death occurred 
May 13, 1878. Among his numerous works 
may be mentioned the following: "Contri- 
butions to Electricity and Magnetism," 
" American Philosophic Trans, " and many 
articles in the "American Journal of 
Science," the journal of the Franklin Insti- 
tute; the proceedings of the American As- 
sociation for the Advancement of Science, 
and in the annual reports of the Smith- 
sonian Institution from its foundation. 



FRANKLIN BUCHANAN, the famous 
rear-admiral of the Confederate navy 
during the rebellion, was born in Baltimore, 
Maryland. He became a United States 
midshipman in 181 5 and was promoted 
through the various grades of the service 
and became a captain in 1855. Mr. Buch- 
anan resigned his captaincy in order to join 



100 



COMPEX/UPM OF BIOGRAPHY, 



the Confederate service in I 86 1 and later he 
asked to be reinstated, but his request was 
refused and he then entered into the service 
of the Confederate government. He was 
placed in command of the frigate " Merri- 
mac " after she had been fitted up as an iron- 
clad, and had command of her at the time 
of the battle of Hampton Roads. It was 
he who had command when the " Merri- 
mac" sunk the two wooden frigates, " Con- 
gress " and "Cumberland," and was also 
in command during part of the historical 
battle of the " Merrimac " and the "Moni- 
tor," where he was wounded and the com- 
mand devolved upon Lieutenant Catesby 
Jones. He was created rear-admiral in the 
Confederate service and commanded the 
Confederate fleet in Mobile bay, which was 
defeated by Admiral Farragut, August 5, 
1864. Mr. Buchanan was in command of 
the "Tennessee," an ironclad, and during 
the engagement he lost one of his legs and 
was taken prisoner in the end by the Union 
fleet. After the war he settled in Talbot 
county. Maryland, where he died May II, 
1874. 

RICHARD PARKS BLAND, a celebrated 
American statesman, frequently called 
"the father of the house," because of his 
many years of service in the lower house 
of congress, was born August 19, 1835, 
near Hartford, Kentucky, where he received 
a plain academic education. He moved, 
in 1855, to Missouri, from whence he went 
overland to California, afterward locating in 
Virginia City, now in the state of Nevada, 
but then part of the territory of Utah. 
While there he practiced law, dabbled in 
mines and mining in Nevada and California 
for several years, and served for a time as 
treasurer of Carson county, Nevada. Mr. 
Bland returned to Missouri in 1865, where 



he engaged in the practice of law at Rolla, 
Missouri, and in 1869 removed to Lebanon, 
Missouri. He began his congressional career 
in 1873, when he was elected as a Demo- 
crat to the forty-third congress, and he was 
regularly re-elected to every congress after 
that time up to the fifty-fourth, when he was 
defeated for re-election, but was returned 
to the fifty-fifth congress as a Silver Demo- 
crat. During all his protracted service, 
while Mr. Bland was always steadfast in his 
support of democratic measures, yet he won 
his special renown as the great advocate cf 
silver, being strongly in favor of the free 
and unlimited coinage of silver, and on ac- 
count of his pronounced views was one of 
the candidates for the presidential nomina- 
tion of the Democratic party at Chicago in 
1896. 

FANNY DAVENPORT (F. L. G. Daven- 
port) was of British birth, but she be- 
longs to the American stage. She was the 
daughter of the famous actor, E. L. Daven- 
port, and was born in London in 1850. 
She first went on the stage as a child at the 
Howard Athenaeum, Boston, and her entire 
life was spent upon the stage. She played 
children's parts at Burton's old theater in 
Chambers street, and then, in 1862, appeared 
as the King of Spain in " Faint Heart Never 
Won Fair Lady. " Here she attracted the 
notice of Augustin Daly, the noted mana- 
ger, then at the Fifth Avenue theater, who 
offered her a six weeks' engagement with 
her father in "London Assurance." She 
afterwards appeared at the same house in a 
variety of characters, and her versatility 
was favorably noticed by the critics. After 
the burning of the old Fifth Avenue, the 
present theater of that name was built at 
Twenty-eighth street, and here Miss Daven- 
port appeared in a play written for her by 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



107 



Mr. Daly. She scored a great success. 
She then starred in this play throughout the 
country, and was married to Mr. Edwin F. 
Price, an actor of her company, in 1880. 
In 1882 she went to Paris and purchased 
the right to produce in America Sardou's 
great emotional play, "Fedora." It was 
put on at the Fourteenth Street theater in 
New York, and in it she won popular favor 
and became one of the most famous actresses 
of her time. 



HORACE BRIGHAM CLAFLIN, one 
of the greatest merchants America has 
produced, was born in Milford, Massachu- 
setts, a son of John Claflin, also a mer- 
chant. Young Claflin started his active life 
as a clerk in his father's store, after having 
been offered the opportunity of a college 
education, but with the characteristic 
promptness that was one of his virtues he 
exclaimed, "No law or medicine for me." 
He had set his heart on being a merchant, 
and when his father retired he and his 
brother Aaron, and his brother-in-law, Sam- 
uel Daniels, conducted the business. Mr. 
Claflin was not content, however, to run a 
store in a town like Milford, and accordingly 
opened a dry goods store at Worcester, with 
his brother as a partner, but the partnership 
was dissolved a year later and H. B. Claflin 
assumed complete control. The business 
in Worcester had been conducted on ortho- 
dox principles, and when Mr. Claflin came 
there and introduced advertising as a means 
of drawing trade, he created considerable 
animosity among the older merchants. Ten 
years later he was one of the most prosper- 
ous merchants. He disposed of his busi- 
ness in Worcester for $30,000, and went to 
New York to search for a wider field than 
that of a shopkeeper. Mr. Claflin and 
William M. Bulkley started in the dry goods 



business there under the firm name of Bulk- 
ley & Claflin, in 1843, an d M f - Bulkley was 
connected with the firm until 185 1, when he 
retired. A new firm was then formed under 
the name of Claflin, Mellin & Co. This 
firm succeeded in founding the largest dry 
goods house in the world, and after weather- 
ing the dangers of the civil war, during 
which the house came very near going un- 
der, and was saved only by the superior 
business abilities of Mr. Claflin, continued to 
grow. The sales of the firm amounted to 
over $72,000,000 a year after the close of 
the war. Mr. Claflin died November 14, 
1885. 

CHARLOTTE CUSHMAN (Charlotte 
Saunders Cushman), one of the most 
celebrated American actresses, was born in 
Boston, July 23, 1816. She was descended 
from one of the earliest Puritan families. 
Her first attempt at stage work was at the 
age of fourteen years in a charitable concert 
given by amateurs in Boston. From this 
time her advance to the first place on the 
American lyric stage was steady, until, in 
1835, while singing in New Orleans, she 
suddenly lost control of her voice so far as 
relates to singing, and was compelled to re- 
tire. She then took up the study for the 
dramatic stage under the direction of Mr. 
Barton, the tragedian. She soon after 
made her debut as " Lady Macbeth." She 
appeared in New York in September, 1836, 
and her success was immediate. Her 
"Romeo" was almost perfect, and she is 
the only woman that has ever appeared in 
the part of "Cardinal Wolsey." She at 
different times acted as support of Forrest 
and Macready. Her London engagement, 
secured in 1845, after many and great dis- 
couragements, proved an unqualified suc- 
cess. 



108 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAl'HV 



Her farewell appearance was at Booth's 
theater, New York, November 7, 1874, in 
the part of " Lady Macbeth," and after that 
performance an Ode by R. H. Stoddard 
was read, and a body of citizens went upon 
the stage, and in their name the venerable 
poet Longfellow presented her with a wreath 
of laurel with an inscription to the effect 
that "she who merits the palm should bear 
it." From the time of her appearance as a 
modest girl in a charitable entertainment 
down to the time of final triumph as a tragic 
queen, she bore herself with as much honor 
to womanhood as to the profession she rep- 
resented. Her death occurred in Boston, 
IVbruary 18, 1876. By her profession she 
acquired a fortune of $600,000. 



NEAL DOW, one of the most prominent 
temperance reformers our country has 
known, was born in Portland, Me., March 20, 
1804. He received his education in the 
Friends Seminary, at New Bedford, Massa- 
chusetts, his parents being members of that 
sect. After leaving school he pursued a 
mecrantile and manufacturing career for a 
number of years. He was active in the 
affairs of his native city, and in 1839 be- 
came chief of the fire department, and in 
1 85 1 was elected mayor. He was re-elected 
to the latter office in 1854. Being opposed 
to the liquor traffic he was a champion of 
the project of prohibition, first brought for- 
ward in 1 839 by James Appleton. While 
serving his first term as mayor he drafted a 
bill for the " suppression of drinking houses 
and tippling shops," which he took to the 
legislature and which was passed without an 
alteration. In 1858 Mr. Dow was elected 
to the legislature. On the outbreak of the 
Civil war he was appointed colonel of the 
Thirteenth Maine Infantry and accompanied 
General Butler's expedition to New Orleans. 



In 1862 he was made brigadier-general. At 
the battle of Port Hudson May 27, 1863, he 
was twice wounded, and taken prisoner. He 
was confined at Libby prison and Mobile 
nearly a year, when, being exchanged, he 
resigned, his health having given way under 
the rigors of his captivity. He made sev- 
eral trips to England in the interests of 
temperance organization, where he addressed 
large audiences. He was the candidate of 
the National Prohibition party for the presi- 
dency in 1880, receiving about ten thousand 
votes. In 1884 he was largely instrumental 
in the amendment of the constitution of 
Maine, adopted by an overwhelming popular 
vote, which forever forbade the manufacture 
or sale of any intoxicating beverages, and 
commanding the legislature' to enforce the 
prohibition. He died October 2, 1897. 



ZACHARY TAYLOR, twelfth president 
of the United States, was born in 
Orange county, Virginia, September 24, 
1784. His boyhood was spent on his fath- 
er's plantation and his education was lim- 
ited. In 1808 he was .made lieutenant of 
the Seventh Infantry, and joined his regi- 
ment at New Orleans. He was promoted 
to captain in 18 10, and commanded at Fort 
Harrison, near the present site of Terre 
Haute, in 181 2, where, for his gallant de- 
fense, he was brevetted major, attaining full 
rank in 18 14. In 1815 he retired to an es- 
tate near Louisville. In 18 16 here-entered 
the army as major, and was promoted to 
lieutenant-colonel and then to colonel. 
Having for many years been Indian agent 
over a large pon ion of the western country, 
he was often required in Washington to give 
advice and counsel in matters connected 
with the Indian b ireau. He served through 
the Black Hawk ,'ndian war of 1832, and in 
[837 was ordered to the command of the 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



109 



army in Florida, where he attacked the In- 
dians in the swamps and brakes, defeated 
them and ended the war. He was brevetted 
brigadier-general and made commander-in- 
chief of the army in Florida. He was as- 
signed to the command of the army of the 
southwest in 1840, but was soon after re- 
lieved of it at his request. He was then 
stationed at posts in Arkansas. In 1S45 he 
was ordered to prepare to protect and de- 
fend Texas boundaries from invasion by 
Mexicans and Indians. On the annexation 
of Texas he proceeded with one thousand 
five hundred men to Corpus Christi, within 
the disputed territory. After reinforcement 
he was ordered by the Mexican General Am- 
pudia to retire beyond the Nueces river, 
with which order lie declined to comply. 
The battles of Palo Alto and Resaca de la 
Palma followed, and he crossed the Rio 
Grande and occupied Matamoras May 18th. 
He was commissioned major-general for this 
campaign, and in September he advanced 
upon the city of Monterey and captured it 
after a hard fight. Here he took up winter 
quarters, and when he was about to resume 
activity in the spring he was ordered to send 
the larger part of his army to reinforce 
General Scott at Vera Cruz. After leaving 
garrisons at various points his army was re- 
duced to about five thousand, mostly fresh 
recruits. He was attacked by the army of 
Santa Anna at Buena Vista, February 22, 
1847, and after a severe fight completely 
routed the Mexicans. He received the 
thanks of congress and a gold medal for 
this victory. He remained in command of 
the "army of occupation" until winter, 
when he returned to the United States. 

In 1848 General Taylor was nominated 
by the Whigs for president. He was elected 
over his two opponents, Cass and Van 
Buren. Great bitterness was developing in 



the struggle for and against the extension of 
slavery, and the newly acquired territory in 
the west, and the fact that the states were 
now equally divided on that question, tended 
to increase the feeling. President Taylor 
favored immediate admission of California 
with her constitution prohibiting slavery, 
and the admission of other states to be 
formed out of the new territory as they 
might elect as they adopted constitutions 
from time to time. This policy resulted in 
the " Omnibus Bill," which afterward passed 
congress, though in separate bills; not, how- 
ever, until after the death of the soldier- 
statesman, which occurred July 9, 1850. 
One of his daughters became the wife of 
Jefferson Davis. 



MELVILLE D. LANDON, better kncwrr 
as " Eli Perkins, " author, lecturer and 
humorist, was born in Eaton, New York, 
September 7, 1839. He was the son of 
John Landon and grandson of Rufus Lan- 
don, a revolutionary soldier from Litchfield 
county, Connecticut. Melville was edu- 
cated at the district school and neighboring 
academy, where he was prepared for the 
sophomore class at Madison University. He 
passed two years at the latter, when he was 
admitted to Union College, and graduated 
in the class of 1861, receiving the degree of 
A. M., in 1862. He was, at once, ap- 
pointed to a position in the treasury depart- 
ment at Washington. This being about the 
time of the breaking out of the war, and 
before the appearance of any Union troops 
at the capital, he assisted in the organiza- 
tion of the " Clay Battalion," of Washing- 
ton. Leaving his clerkship some time later, 
he took up duties on the staff of General A. 
L. Chetlain, who was in command at Mem- 
phis. In 1864 he resigned from the army 
and engaged in cotton planting in Arkansas 



110 



COMPENDIUM OF HIOGRAPHT. 



and Louisiana. In 1867 he went abroad, 
making the tour of Europe, traversing Rus- 
sia. While in the latter country his old 
commander of the " Clay Battalion," Gen- 
eral Cassius M. Clay, then United States 
minister at St. Petersburg, made him secre- 
tary of legation. In 1 87 1 , on returning to 
America, he published a history of the 
Franco-Prussian war, and followed it with 
numerous humorous writings for the public 
press under the name of "Eli Perkins," 
which, with his regular contributions to the 
" Commercial Advertiser," brought him into 
notice, and spread his reputation as a hu- 
morist throughout the country. He also pub- 
lished "Saratoga in 1891," "Wit, Humor 
and Pathos," " Wit and Humor of the Age," 
" Kings of Platform and Pulpit," " Thirty 
Years of Wit and Humor," " Fun and Fact," 
and " China and Japan." 



LEWIS CASS, one of the most prom- 
inent statesman and party leaders of his 
day, was born at Exeter, New Hampshire, 
October 9, 17S2. He studied law, and hav- 
ing removed to Zanesville, Ohio, commenced 
the practice of that profession in 1802. He 
entered the service of the American govern- 
ment in 1812 and was made a colonel in 
the army under General William Hull, and 
on the surrender of Fort Maiden by that 
officer was held as a prisoner. Being re- 
leased in 1813, he was promoted to the 
rank of brigadier-general and in 1814 ap- 
pointed governor of Michigan Territory. 
After he had held that office for some 
sixteen years, negotiating, in the meantime, 
many treaties with the Indians, General 
Cass was made secretary of war in the cabi- 
net of President Jackson, in 1 S3 1. He was, 
in 1836, appointed minister to France, 
which office he held for six years. In 1844 
he -.as elected United States senator from 



Michigan. In 1846 General Cass opposed 
the Wilmot Proviso, which was an amend- 
ment to a bill for the purchase of land from 
Mexico, which provided that in any of the 
territory acquired from that power slavery 
should not exist. For this and other reasons 
he was nominated as Democratic candidate 
for the presidency of the United States in 
1848, but was defeated by General Zacharv 
Taylor, the Whig candidate, having but 
one hundred and thirty-seven electoral votes 
to his opponent's one hundred and sixty- 
three. In 1849 General Cass was re-elected 
to the senate of the United States, and in 
1854 supported Douglas' Kansas-Nebraska 
bill. He became secretary of state in 
March, 1857, under President Buchanan, 
but resigned that office in December, i860. 
He died June 17, 1866. The published 
works of Lewis Cass, while not numerous, 
are well written and display much ability. 
He was one of the foremost men of his day 
in the political councils of the Democratic 
party, and left a reputation for high probity 
and honor behind him. 



DEWITT CLINTON.— Probably there 
were but few men who were so popular 
in their time, or who have had so much in- 
fluence in moulding events as the individual 
whose name honors the head of this article. 
De Witt Clinton was the son of General 
James Clinton, and a nephew of Governor 
George Clinton, who was the fourth vice- 
president of the United States. He was a 
native of Orange county, New York, born at 
Little Britain, March 2, 1769. He gradu- 
ated from Columbia College, in his native 
state, in 1796, and took up the study of law. 
In 1 790 he became private secretary to his 
uncle, then governor of New York. He en- 
tered public life as a Republican or anti- 
Federalist, and was elected to the lower 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



Ill 



house of the state assembly in 1797, and the 
senate of that body in 1 798. At that time 
he was looked on as " the most rising man 
in the Union." In 1S01 he was elected to 
the United States senate. In 1803 he was 
appointed by the governor and council 
mayor of the city of New York, then a 
very important and powerful office. Hav- 
ing been re-appointed, he held the office 
of mayor for nearly eleven years, and 
rendered great service to that city. Mr. 
Clinton served as lieutenant-governor of 
the state of New York, 1S11-13, and 
was one of the commissioners appointed 
to examine and survey a route for a canal 
from the Hudson river to Lake Erie. Dif- 
fering with President Madison, in relation to 
the war, in 18 12, he was nominated for the 
presidency against that gentleman, by a 
coalition party called the Clintonians, many 
of whom were Federalists. Clinton received 
eight-nine electoral votes. His course at 
this time impaired his popularity for a time. 
He was removed from the mayoralty in 
1814, and retired to private life. In 1S15 
he wrote a powerful argument for the con- 
struction of the Erie canal, then a great and 
beneficent work of which he was the prin- 
cipal promoter. This was in the shape of 
a memorial to the legislature, which, in 
18 1 7, passed a bill authorizing the construc- 
tion of that canal. The same year he was 
elected governor of New York, almost unani- 
mously, notwithstanding the opposition of 
a few who pronounced the scheme of the 
canal visionary. He was re-elected governor 
in 1820. He was at this time, also, presi- 
dent of the canal commissioners. He de- 
clined a re-election to the gubernatorial 
chair in 1822 and was removed from his 
place on the canal board two years later. 
But he was triumphantly elected to the of- 
fice of governor that fall, and his pet project. 



the Erie canal, was finished the next year. 
He was re-elected governor in 1826, but 
died while holding that office, February n, 
1828. 

AARON BURR, one of the many brilliant 
figures on the political stage in the early 
days of America, was born at Newark, New 
Jersey, February 6, 1756. He was the son 
of Aaron and Esther Burr, the former the 
president of the College of New Jersey, and 
the latter a daughter of Jonathan Edwards, 
who had been president of the same educa- 
tional institution. Young Burr graduated 
at Princeton in 1772. In 1775 he joined 
the provincial army at Cambridge, Massa- 
chusetts. For a time, he served as a private 
soldier, but later was made an aide on the 
staff of the unfortunate General Montgom- 
ery, in the Quebec expedition. Subse- 
quently he was on the staffs of Arnold, Put- 
nam and Washington, the latter of whom 
he disliked. He was promoted to the rank 
of lieutenant-colonel and commanded a 
brigade on Monmouth's bloody field. In 
x 779» on account of feeble health, Colonel 
Burr resigned from the army. He took up 
the practice of law in Albany, New York, 
but subsequently removed to New York City. 
In 17S9 he became attorney-general of that 
state. In 1 79 1 he was chosen to represent 
the state of New York in the United States 
senate and held that position for six years. 
In 1800 he and Thomas Jefferson were both 
candidates for the presidency, and there 
being a tie in the electoral college, each 
having seventy-three votes, the choice was 
left to congress, who gave the first place to 
Jefferson and made Aaron Burr vice-presi- 
dent, as the method then was. In 1 S04 Mr. 
Burr and his great rival, Alexander Hamil- 
ton, met in a duel, which resulted in the 
death of the latter, Burr losing thereby con- 



112 



CO .I//' i:\Dir\l OF BIOGRAPHY. 



siderable political and social influence. He 
soon embarked in a wild attempt upon 
Mexico, and as was asserted, upon the 
southwestern territories of the United 
States. He was tried for treason at 
Richmond, Virginia, in 1807, but acquitted, 
and to avoid importunate creditors, fled to 
Europe. After a time, in 1812, he returned 
to New York, where he practiced law, and 
where he died, September 14, 1836. A man 
of great ability, brilliant and popular talents, 
his influence was destroyed by his unscrupu- 
lous political actions and immoral private 
life. 



ALBER1 GALLATIN, one of the most 
distinguished statesmen of the early 
days of the republic, was born at Geneva, 
Switzerland, January 20, 1761. He was 
theson of J< an de Gallatin and Sophia A. 
Rolaz du Rosey Gallatin, representatives of 
an old patrician family. Albert Gallatin 
was left an orphan at an early age, and was 
ted under the care of friends of his 
parents, lit- graduated from the University 
"I Geneva in 1779, and declining employ- 
ment under one of the sovereigns of Ger- 
man}-, came to the struggling colonies, land- 
ing ii July 14, 17S0. Shortly after 
his arrival he proceeded to Maine, where he 
lunteer under Colonel Allen, 
lb- made advances to the government for 
the support of the American troops, and in 
mber, 1780, was placed in command 
of a small fort at Passamaquoddy, defended 
by a force of militia, volunteers and Indians. 
In 1783 he was professor of the French 
language at Harvard University. A year 
later, having received his patrimony from 
Europe, he purchased large tracts of land 
in western Virginia, but was prevented by 
the Indians from forming the large settle- 
ment he proposed, and, in 17S6, purchased 



a farm in Fayette county, Pennsylvania. 
In 1789 he was a member of the convention 
to amend the constitution of that state, and 
united himself with the Republican party, 
the head of which was Thomas Jefferson. 
The following year he was elected to the 
legislature of Pennsylvania, to which he was 
subsequently re-elected. In 1793 he was 
elected to the United States senate, but 
could not take his seat on account of not 
having been a citizen long enough. In 1794 
Mr. Gallatin was elected to the representa- 
tive branch of congress, in which be served 
three terms. He also took an important 
position in the suppression of the "whiskey 
insurrection." In 1801, on the access: 
Jefferson to the presidency. Mr. Gallatin 
was appointed secretary of the treasury. 
In 1809 Mr. Madison offered him the posi- 
tion of secretary of state, but he declined, 
and continued at the head of the treasury 
until 1812, a period of twelve years. Ib- 
exercised a great influence on the other de- 
partments and in the general administration, 
especially in the matter of financial reform, 
and recommended measures for taxation, 
etc., which were passed by congress, and be- 
came laws May 24, 1 8 1 3. The same year he 
was sent as an envoy extraordinary to Rus- 
sia, which had offered to mediate 
this country and Great Britain, but the lat- 
ter country refusing the interposition of 
another power, and agreeing to treat di- 
rectly with the United States, in 1S14. at 
Ghent, Mr. Gallatin, in connection with his 
distinguished colleagues, negotiated and 
I the treaty of peace. In [815, in 
conjunction with Messrs. Adams and I 

■ltd, at London, a commercial treaty 
en the two countries. In [8l< 
dining his old post at the head of the ti 
ury, Mr Gallatin was s<-nt as minister to 
France, where he remained until 1 



COMPENDIUM {>/■' BIOGRAPIIT. 



113 



After a year spent in England as envoy ex- 
traordinary, he took up his residence in New 
York, and from that time held no public 
office. In I S30 he was chosen president of 
the council of the University of New York. 
He was, in 1831, made president of the 
National bank, which position he resigned 
in 1839. He died August 12, 1849. 



MILLARD FILLMORE, the thirteenth 
president of the United States, was 
born of New England parentage in Summer 
Hill, Cayuga county, New York, January 7, 
1800. His school education was very lim- 
ited, but he occupied his leisure hours in 
study. He worked in youth upon his fa- 
ther's farm in his native county, and at the 
age of fifteen was apprenticed to a wool 
carder and cloth dresser. Four years later 
he was induced by Judge Wood to enter his 
office at Montviile, New York, and take up 
the study of law. This warm friend, find- 
ing young Fillmore destitute of means, 
loaned him money, but the latter, not wish- 
ing to incur a heavy debt, taught school 
during part of the time and in this and other 
ways helped maintain himself. In 1822 he 
removed to Buffalo, New York, and the year 
following, being admitted to the bar, he 
commenced the practice of his profession 
at East Aurora, in the same state. Here 
he remained until 1830, having, in the 
meantime, been admitted to practice in the 
supreme court, when he returned to Buffalo, 
where he became the partner of S. G. 
Haven and N. K. Hall. He entered poli- 
tics and served in the state legislature from 
1829 to 1832. He was in congress in 1833- 
35 and in 1S37-41, where he proved an 
active and useful member, favoring the 
views of John Quincy Adams, then battling 
almost alone the slave-holding party in na- 
tional politics, and in most of public ques- 



tions acted with the Whig party. While 
chairman of the committee of ways and 
means he took a leading part in draughting 
the tariff bill of 1842. In 1844 Mr. Fill- 
more was the Whig candidate for governor 
of New York. In 1847 he was chosen 
comptroller of the state, and abandoning 
his practice and profession removed to Al- 
bany. In 1 848 he was elected vice presi- 
dent on the ticket with General Zachary 
Taylor, and they were inaugurated the fol- 
lowing March. On the death of the presi- 
dent, July 9, 1850, Mr. Fillmore was in- 
ducted into that office. The great events 
of his administration were the passage of 
the famous compromise acts of 1850, and 
the sending out of the Japan expedition of 
1852. 

March 4, 1853, having served one term, 
President Fillmore retired from office, and 
in 1855 went to Europe, where he received 
marked attention. On returning home, in 
1856, he was nominated for the presidency 
by the Native American or " Know-Noth- 
ing" party, but was defeated, James Buch- 
anan being the successful candidate. 

Mr. Fillmore ever afterward lived in re- 
tirement. During the conflict of Civil war 
he was mostly silent. It was generally sup- 
posed, however, that his sympathy was with 
the southern confederacy. He kept aloof 
from the conflict without any words of cheer 
to the one party or the other. For this rea- 
son he was forgotten by both. He died of 
paralysis, in Buffalo, New York, March 8, 
1874- 

PETER F. ROTHERMEL, one of Amer- 
ica's greatest and best-known historical 
painters, was born in Luzerne county, Penn- 
sylvania, July 8, 1817, and was of German 
ancestry. He received his earlier education 
in his native county, and in Philadelphia 



114 



LOMI'E.XDILM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



learned the profession of land surveying. 
But a strong bias toward art drew him away 
and he smm opened a studio where he did 
portrait painting. This soon gave place to 
historical painting, he having discovered the 
In nt of his genius in that direction. Be- 
sides the two pictures in the Capitol at 
Washington ' '1 >'>uto Discovering tin- Mis- 
sissippi" and "Patrick Henry Before the 
Virginia House of Burgesses" — Rothermel 
painted many others, chief among which 
are: "Columbus Before Queen Isabella," 
"Martyrs of the Colosseum," "Cromwell 
Breaking Up Service in an English Church, " 
and the famous picture of the "Battle 
of Gettysburg." The last named was 
painted for the state of Pennsylvania, for 
which Rothermel received the sum of $25,- 
000, and which it took him four years to 
plan ami to p tint. It represents the p 
of that historic held held by the First corps, 
an exclusively Pennsylvania body of men, 
and was selected by Rothermel for that 
reason. For many years most of his time 
was spent in Italy, only returning for short 
is. He died at Philadelphia, August 
16, 1895. 

EDMUND KIRBY SMITH, one of the 
distinguished leaders upon the side of the 
south in the late Civil war, was born at St. 
Augustine, Florida, in 1X24. After receiv- 
ing the usual education he was appointed to 
nited States Military Academy at W< 5( 
Point, from which he graduated in 1S45 and 
entered the army as second lieutenant of 
infantry. During the Mexican war he was 
Inst lieutenant and captain for gallant 
conduct at Cerro Gordo and Contreras. 
From 1849 to 1852 he was assistant pro- 
fessor of mathematics at West Point. He 
was transferred to the Second cavalry with 
the rank of captain in 1855, served on the 



frontier, and was wounded in a fight with 
Comanche Indians in Texas, May 13, 
In January, 1861, he became major of his 
regiment, but resigned April 9th to fol- 
low the fortunes of the southern cause. 
He was appointed brigadier-general in the 
Confederate army ami served in Virginia. 
At the battle of Bull Run, July 21. [86l, 
he arrived on the field late in the day, but 
was soon disabled by a wound. He was 
made major-general in 1 X62, and beitiu,' trans- 
ferred to East Tennessee, was given com- 
mand of that department. Under General 
Braxton lira^'j,' he led the advance in the 
invasion of Kentucky and defeated the Union 
forces at Richmond, Kentucky, August 30, 
1862, and advanced to Frankfort. Pro- 
moted to the rank of lieutenant-general, he 
was engaged at the battle of Perryville, 
October 10, and in the battle of Murfrees- 
boro, December 31. 1862, and January 3, 
He was soon made general, the 
St rank in the service, and in com- 
mand of the trans-Mississippi department 
opposed General N. P. Banks in the famous 
Red River expedition, taking part in the 
battle of Jenkins Ferry, April 30, 1S64, and 
other engagements of that eventful cam- 
paign. He was the last to surrender the 
forces under his command, which he did 
May 26, 1865. After the close of the war 
he located in Tennessee, where he died 
March 28, 1893. 



JOHN JAMES INGALLS, a famous 
American statesman, was born Decem- 
1, [833, at Middleton, Massachusetts, 

where he was reared and received his early 
education. He went to Kansas in 1858 
and joined the free-soil army, and a year 
after his arrival he was a member of the his- 
torical Wyandotte convention, which drafted 
a free-state constitution. In i860 he was 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



1?.S 



made secretary of the territorial council, 
and in 1861 was secretary of the state sen- 
ate. The next year he was duly elected to 
the legitimate state senate from Atchison, 
where he had made his home. From that 
time he was the leader of the radical Re- 
publican element in the state. He became 
the editor of the " Atchison Champion " in 
1S63, which was a "red-hot free-soil Re- 
publican organ." In 1862 he was the anti- 
Lane candidate for lieutenant-governor, but 
was defeated. He was elected to the Unit- 
ed States senate to succeed Senator Pom- 
eroy, and took his seat in the forty-third 
congress and served until the fiftieth. In 
the forty-ninth congress he succeeded Sen- 
ator Sherman as president pro tern., which 
position he held through the fiftieth con- 
gress. 

BENJAMIN WEST, the greatest of the 
early American painters, was of Eng- 
lish descent and Quaker parentage. He was 
born in Springfield, Pennsylvania, in 1738. 
From what source he inherited his genius it 
is hard to imagine, since the tenets and 
tendencies of the Quaker faith were not cal- 
culated to encourage the genius of art, but 
at the age of nine years, with no suggestion 
except that of inspiration, we find him choos- 
ing his model from life, and laboring over 
his first work calculated to attract public 
notice. It was a representation of a sleep- 
ing child in its cradle. The brush with 
which he painted it was made of hairs 
which he plucked from the cat's tail, and 
the colors were obtained from the war paints 
of friendly Indians, his mother's indigo bag, 
and ground chalk and charcoal, and the juice 
of berries, but there were touches in the rude 
production that he declared in later days 
were a credit to his best works. The pic- 
ture attracted notice, for a council was 



called at once to pass upon the boy's con- 
duct in thus infringing the laws of the so- 
ciety. There were judges among them who 
saw in his genius a rare gift and their wis- 
dom prevailed, and the child was given per- 
mission to follow his inclination. He studied 
under a painter named Williams, and then 
spent some years as a portrait painter with 
advancing success. At the age of twenty- 
two he went to Italy, and not until he had 
perfected himself by twenty-three years of 
labor in that paradise of art was he satisfied 
to turn his face toward home. However, he 
stopped at London, and decided to settle 
there, sending to America for his intended 
bride to join him. Though the Revolution- 
ary war was raging, King George III showed 
the American artist the highest considera- 
tion and regard. His remuneration from 
works for royalty amounted to five thou- 
sand dollars per year for thirty years. 

West's best known work in America is, 
perhaps, "The Death of General Wolf." 
West was one of the thirty-six original mem- 
bers of the Royal academy and succeeded 
Joshua Reynolds as president, which posi- 
tion he held until his death. His early 
works were his best, as he ceased to display 
originality in his later life, conventionality 
having seriously affected his efforts. He 
died in 1820. 



SAMUEL PORTER JONES, the famous 
Georgia evangelist, was born October 
16, 1847, in Chambers county, Alabama. 
He did not attend school regularly during 
his boyhood, but worked on a farm, and 
went to school at intervals, on account of 
ill health. His father removed to Carters- 
ville, Georgia, when Mr. Jones was a small 
boy. He quit school at the age of nineteen 
and never attended college. The war inter- 
fered with his education, which was intended 



116 



MPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



to prepare him for the legal profession. 
After the war he renewed his preparation 
for college, but was compelled to desist from 
such a course, as his health failed hitn en- 
tirely. Later on, however, he still pursued 
his legal studies ami was admitted to the 
bar. Soon after this event he went to Dal- 
las, Paulding county, Georgia, where he was 
engaged in the practice of his profession, 
and in a few months removed to Cherokee 
county, Alabama, where he taught school. 
In 181 turned to Cartersville, Georgia, 

and arrived in time to see his father die. 
Immediately after this event he applied for 
a license to preach, and went to Atlanta, 
Georgia, to the meeting of the North Geor- 
gia Conference of the M. E. church south, 
whicl 1 him on trial. He became 

au i of great note, and traveled 

exten lelivering his sermons in an 

inimitable style that made him very popular 
with the masses, his methods of conducting 
revivals being unique and original and his 
preaching practical and incisive. 



SHELBY MOORE CULLOM, a national 
character in political affairs and for 
many years United States senator from 
Illinois, was born November 22, 1S29, at 
Monticello. Kentucky. He came with his 
parents to Illinois in 1 S30 and spent his early 
yearson afarm, but having formed the pu 
of devoting himself to the lawyer's profession 
he spent two years study at the Rock River 
seminary at Mount Morris, Illinois. In iS;.} 
Mr. Cullom entered the law office of Stuart 
and Edwards at Springfield, Illinois, and two 
later he began the independent prac- 
tice of law in that city. He took an active 
interest in politics and was soon elected city 
attorney of Springfield. In 1856 he was 
elected a member of the Illinois house of 
representatives. He identified himself with 



the newly formed Republican party and in 
i860 was re-elected to the legislature of his 
state, in which he was chosen speaker of the 
house. In [862 President Lincoln appoint- 
ed a commission to pass upon and examine 
the accounts of the United States quarter- 
masters and disbursing officers, composed 
as follows: Shelby M. Cullom, of Illinois; 
Charles A. Dana, of New York, and 
Gov. Boutwell, of Massachusetts. Mr. 
Cullom was nominated for congress in 
1864, and was elected by a majority of 
1,785. In the house of representatives he 
became an active and aggressive member, 
was chairman of the committee on territories 
and served in congress until 1868. Mr. 
Cullom was returned to the state legislature, 
of which he was chosen speaker in i 
and was re-elected in 1874. In 1S76 he 
was elected governor of Illinois and at the 
end of his term he was chosen for a second 
term. He was elected United States senator 
in 1883 and twice re-electe.d. 



RICHARD JORDAN" GATLING. an 
American inventor of much note, was 
born in Hertford counts, North Carolina. 
September 12, 1818. At an early age he 
gave promise of an inventive genius. The 
first emanation from his mind was the 
invention of a screw for the propulsion of 
water craft, but on application for a 
patent, found that be was forestalled but 
a short time by John Ericsson Subse- 
quently he invented a machine for sowing 
wheat in drills, which was used to a great 
extent throughout the west. He then stud- 
ied medicine, and in 1S47 8 
lectures at the Indiana Medical College 
at Laporte, and in 1S4S 9 at the Ohio 
Medical College at Cincinnati. He later 
discovered a method of transmitting power 
through the medium of compressed air. A 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



119 



double-acting hemp break was also invented 
by him. The invention, however, by which 
Dr. Gatling became best known was the 
famous machine gun which bears his name. 
This he brought to light in 1861-62, and on 
the first trial of it, in the spring of the latter 
year, two hundred shots per minute were 
fired from it. After making some improve- 
ments which increased its efficiency, it was 
submitted to severe trials by our govern- 
ment at the arsenals at Frankfort, Wash- 
ington and Fortress Monroe, and at other 
points. The gun was finally adopted by 
our government, as well as by that of Great 
Britain, Russia and others. 



BENJAMIN RYAN TILLMAN, who won 
a national fame in politics, was born 
August 11, 1847, in Edgefield county, South 
Carolina. He received his education in the 
Oldfield school, where he acquired the 
rudiments of Latin and Greek, in addition 
to a good English education. He left school 
in 1864 to join the Confederate army, but 
was prevented from doing so by a severe 
illness, which resulted in the loss of an eye. 
In 1867 he removed to Florida, but returned 
in 1868, when he was married and devoted 
himself to farming. He was chairman of 
the Democratic organization of his county, 
but except a few occasional services he took 
no active part in politics then. Gradually, 
however, his attention was directed to the 
depressed condition of the farming interests 
of his state, and in August, 1885, before a 
joint meeting of the agricultural society and 
state grange at Bennettsville, he made a 
speech in which he set forth the cause of 
agricultural depression and urged measures 
of relief. From his active interest in the 
farming class he was styled the " Agricult- 
ural Moses." He advocated an industrial 

school for women and for a separate agri- 
7 



cultural college, and in 1887 he secured a 
modification in the final draft of the will of 
Thomas G. Clemson, which resulted in the 
erection of the Clemson Agricultural Col- 
lege at Fort Hill. In 1890 he was chosen 
governor on the Democratic ticket, and 
carried the election by a large majority. 
Governor Tillman was inaugurated Decem- 
ber 4, 1890. Mr. Tillman was next elected 
to the United States senate from South 
Carolina, and gained a national reputation 
by his fervid oratory. 



GEORGE DENISON PRENTICE.— 
No journalist of America was so cele- 
brated in his time for the wit, spice, and 
vigor of his writing, as the gentleman whose 
name heads this sketch. From Atlantic to 
Pacific he was well known by his witticism 
as well as by strength and force of his edi- 
torials. He was a native of Preston, Con- 
necticut, born December 18, 1802. After 
laying the foundation of a liberal education 
in his youth, he entered Brown University, 
from which he was graduated in 1823. Tak- 
ing up the study of law, he was admitted to 
the bar in 1829. During part of his time 
he was editor of the " New England Weekly 
Review," a position which he relinquished 
to go south and was succeeded by John 
Greenleaf Whittier, the Quaker poet. 

On arriving in Louisville, whither he 
had gone to gather items for his history of 
Henry Clay, Mr. Prentice became identified 
with the " Louisville Journal," which, under 
his hands, became one of the leading Whig 
newspapers of the country. At the head of 
this he remained until the day of his death. 
This latter event occurred January 22, 1870, 
and he was succeeded in the control of the 
"Journal" by Colonel Henry Watterson. 

Mr. Prentice was an author of consider- 
able celebrity, chief among his works being 



120 



MPENDIl 1/ OF BIOGRAPHY, 



"The Life of Henry Clay," and " Prentice- 
ana," a collection of wit and humor, that 
passed through several large editions. 



SAM. HOUSTON, in the opinion of some 
critics one of the most remarkable men 
: figured in American history, was a 
native of Rockbridge county, Virginia, born 
March 2, [793. Early in life he was left in 
destitute circumstances by the death of his 
father, and, with his mother, removed to 
Tennessee, then almost a boundless wilder- 
ness. He received but little education. 

:ing the most of his time among the 

ikee Indians. Part of the time of his 
residence there Houston acted as clerk for a 
trader and also taught one of the primitive 

ils of the day In 1813 he enlisted as 
private in the United States army and was 
engaged under General Jackson in the war 
with the Creek Indians. When peace was 
Houston was a lieutenant, but he re- 
signed his commission and commenced the 
study of law at Nashville. After holding 
some minor offices he was elected member 

mgress from Tennessee. This was in 
He retained this office until 1827, 
when he was chosen governor of the state. 
In 1 jning that office before the ex- 

piration of his term, Sam Houston removed 
to Arkansas, and made his home among the 
I >kees, becoming the agent of that 

tribe and representing their interests at 
Washington. On a visit to Texas, just 
prior to the election of delegates to a con- 
vention called for the purpose of drawing 
up a constitution previous to the admission 
of the state into the Mexican union, he was 
unanimously chosen a delegate. The 
vention framed the constitution, but, it be- 
ing rejected by the government of M 
and the petition for admission to the * 
federacy denied and the Texans told by the 



president of the Mexican union to give up 
their arms, bred trouble. It was determined 
to resist this demand. A military force was 
soon organized, with General Houston at 
the head of it. War was prosecuted with 
great vigor, and with varying success, but 
at the battle of San Jacinto, April 2 1 , 1836, 
the Mexicans were defeated and their leader 
and president, Santa Anna, captured. Texas 
was then proclaimed an independent repub- 
lic, and in October of the same year Hous- 
ton was inaugurated president. On the ad- 
mission of Texas to the Federal Union, in 
Houston was elected senator, and 
held that position for twelve years. Oppos- 
ing the idea of secession, he retired from 
political life in 1861, and died at Hunts- 
ville, Texas, July 25, 1863. 



ELI WHITNEY, the inventor of the cot- 
i-gin, was born in West bo rough, M 
sachusetts, December 8, 1765. After his 
graduation from Yale College, he went to 
Georgia, where he studied law, and lived 
with the family of the widow of General 
Nathaniel Greene. At that time the only 
way known to separate the cotton seed from 
the fiber was by hand, making it extremely 
slow and expensive, ami for this reason cot- 
ton was little cultivated in this country. 
Mrs. Greene urged the inventive Whitney 
to devise some means for accomplishing 
this work by machinery. This he finally 
succeeded in doing, but he was harassed by 
attempts to defraud him by those who had 
stolen his ideas. He at last formed a part- 
nership with a man named Miller, and they 
began the manufacture of the machines at 
Washington, Georgia, in 1795. The 
cess of his invention was immediate, and the 
legislature of Smith Carolina voted the sum 
of $50,000 for his idea. This sum he had 
great difficulty in collecting, after years of 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



121 



litigation and delay. North Carolina al- 
lowed him a royalty, and the same was 
agreed to by Tennessee, but was never paid. 

While his fame rests upon the invention 
of the cotton-gin, his fortune came from his 
improvements in the manufacture and con- 
struction of firearms. In 1798 the United 
States government gave him a contract for 
this purpose, and he accumulated a fortune 
from it. The town of Whitneyville, Con- 
necticut, was founded by this fortune. 
Whitney died at New Haven, Connecticut, 
January 8, 1825. 

The cotton-gin made the cultivation of 
cotton profitable, and this led to rapid in- 
troduction of slavery in the south. His in- 
vention thus affected our national history in 
a manner little dreamed of by the inventor. 



LESTER WALLACK (John Lester Wal- 
lack), for many years the leading light 
comedian upon the American stage, was 
the son of James W. Wallack, the " Brum- 
mell of the Stage." Both father and son 
were noted for their comeliness of feature 
and form. Lester Wallack was born in 
New York, January 1, 18 19. He received 
his education in England, and made his first 
appearance on the stage in 1848 at the New 
Broadway theater, New York. He acted 
light comedy parts, and also occasion- 
ally in romantic plays like Monte Cristo, 
which play made him his fame. He went 
to England and played under management 
of such men as Hamblin and Burton, and then 
returned to New York with his father, who 
opened the first Wallack's theater, at the 
corner of Broome and Broadway, in 1852. 
The location was afterward changed to 
Thirteenth and Broadway, in 1861, and 
later to its present location, Broadway and 
Thirteenth, in 1882. The elder Wallack 
died in 1864, after which Lester assumed 



management, jointly with Theodore Moss. 
Lester Wallack was commissioned in the 
queen's service while in England, and there 
he also married a sister to the famous artist, 
the late John Everett Millais. While Les- 
ter Wallack never played in the interior 
cities, his name was as familiar to the public 
as that of our greatest stars. He died Sep- 
tember 6, 1888, at Stamford, Connecticut. 



GEORGE MORTIMER PULLMAN, 
the palace car magnate, inventor, 
multi-millionaire and manufacturer, may 
well be classed among the remarkable 
self-made men of the century. He was 
born March 3, 1831, in Chautauqua county, 
New York. His parents were poor, and 
his education was limited to what he could 
learn of the rudimentary branches in the 
district school. At the age of fourteen he 
went to work as clerk for a country mer- 
chant. He kept this place three years, 
studying at night. When seventeen he 
went to Albion, New York, and worked for 
his brother, who kept a cabinet shop there. 
Five years later he went into business for 
himself as contractor for moving buildings 
along the line of the Erie canal, which was 
then being widened by the state, and was 
successful in this. In 1858 he removed to 
Chicago and engaged in the business of 
moving and raising houses. The work was 
novel there then and he was quite success-. 
ful. About this time the discomfort attend- 
ant on traveling at night attracted his at- 
tention. He reasoned that the public would 
gladly pay for comfortable sleeping accom- 
modations. A few sleeping cars were in 
use at that time, but they were wretchedly 
crude, uncomfortable affairs. In 1S59 he 
bought two old day coaches from the Chi- 
cago & Alton road and remodeled them some- 
thing like the general plan of the sleepin? 



I-'L' 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOG /,- i /•// r. 



cars of tin- present day. They were put 
into service on the Chicago & Alton and 
became popular at once. In 1K63 he built 
the first sleeping-car resembling the Pullman 
cars of to-day. It cost $18,000 and was 
the " Pioneer." After that the Pullman 
Palace Car Company prospered. It had 
shops at different cities. In [ 880 the Town 
of Pullman was founded by Mr. Pullman 
and his company, and this model manufac- 
turing community is known all over the 
world. Mr. Pullman died O 07- 



JAMES E. B. STUART, the most famous 
cavalry leader of the Southern Confed- 
eracy during the Civil war, was born in 
Patrick county. Virginia, in 1833 On 
graduating from the United States Military 
Academy, West Point, in 1S54, he w 
signed, as second lieutenant, to a regiment 
of mounted rifles, receiving his commission 
in October. In March, 1S55, he was trans- 
! to the newly organised First cavalry, 
and was promoted to first lieutenant the 
following December, and to captain April 
22, 1 S6 1. Taking the side of the south, 
May 14, [86l, he was made Colonel of a 
Virginia cavalry regiment, and served as 
such at Bull Kun. In September, 1861, he 
was promoted to the rank of brigadier-gen- 
erai. and major-general early in 1862. On 
tin- reorganization of the Army of Northern 
Virginia, in June of the latter year, when 
K. 11. Lee assumed command. General Stu- 
art made a reconnoissance with one thou- 
sand five hundred cavalry and four guns, 
ami in two days made the circuit of McClel- 
lan's army, producing much confusion and 
gathering useful information, and losing but 
one man. August 25. 1862, he captured 
part 1 1 I' idquarters' train, including 

that general's private baggage and official 
correspondence, and the next night, in a 



descent upon Manasses, capturing immense 
quantities of commissary and quartermaster 
store, eight guns, a number of locomotives 
and a few hundred prisoners. During the 
invasion of Maryland, in September, 1 

neral Stuart acted as rearguard, resisting 
the advance of the Federal cavalry at South 
Mountain, and at Antietam commanded the 

.federate left. Shortly after he cros- 1 
the Potomac, making a raid as far as Cham- 
bersburg, Pennsylvania. In the battle of 
lericksburg, December 13, 1862, Gen- 
eral Stuart's command was on the extreme 
right of the Confederate line. At Chai 
lorsville, after "Stonewall " Jackson's death 
and the wounding of General A. P. Hill, 

:eral Stuart assumed command of Jack- 
son's corps, which he led in the severe con- 
of May 3, 1863. Early in June, the 
same year, a large force of cavalry was 
gathered under Stuart, at Culpepper, Vir- 
ginia, which, advancing to join General Lee 
in his invasion of Pennsylvania, was met at 
Brandy station, by two divisions of cavalry 
and two brigades of infantry, underGenei.il 
John I. Gregg, and driven back. During the 
movements of the Gettysburg campaign he 
rendered important services. In May, 1- 
General Stuart succeeded, by a detour, in 
placing himself between Richmond and 
Sheridan's advancing column, and at Vellow 
Tavern was attacked in force. During the 
fierce conflict that ensued General Stuart 
was mortally wounded, and died at Rich- 
mond, May 11. 1 



FRANKLIN PIERCE, the fourteenth 
president of the United States —from 
until 1857 — was born November 23, 
1804, at Hillsboro, New Hampshire. He 
came of old revolutionary stock and his 
father was a governor of the state. Mr 
Pierce entered Bowdoin College in 



C OMPEND I i M OF JJ/OGAW PI IV. 



123 



was graduated in 1824, and took up the 
study of law in the office of Judge Wood- 
bury, and later he was admitted to the bar. 
Mr. Pierce practiced his profession with 
varying successes in his native town and 
also in Concord. He was elected to the 
state legislature in 1S33 and served in that 
body until 1837, the last two years of his 
term serving as speaker of the house. He 
was elected to the United States senate in 
1837, just as President Van Buren began 
his term of office. Mr. Pierce served until 
1842, and many times during Polk's term he 
declined important public offices. During 
the war with Mexico Mr. Pierce was ap- 
pointed brigadier-general, and he embarked 
with a portion of his troops at Newport, 
Rhode Island, May 27, 1847, and went with 
them to the field of battle. He served 
through the war and distinguished himself 
by his skill, bravery and excellent judg- 
ment. When he reached his home in his 
native state he was received coldly by the 
opponents of the war, but the advocates of 
the war made up for his cold reception by 
the enthusiastic welcome which they ac- 
corded him. Mr. Pierce resumed the prac- 
tice of his profession, and in the political 
strife that followed he gave his support to 
the pro-slavery wing of the Democratic 
party. The Democratic convention met in 
Baltimore, June 12, 1852, to nominate a 
candidate for the presidency, and they con- 
tinued in session four days, and in thirty- 
five ballotings no one had secured the re- 
quisite two-thirds vote. Mr. Pierce had not 
received a vote as yet, until the Virginia 
delegation brought his name forward, and 
finally on the forty-ninth ballot Mr. Pierce 
received 282 votes and all the other candi- 
dates eleven. His opponent on the Whig 
ticket was General Winfield Scott, who 
only received the electoral votes of four 



states. Mr. Pierce was inaugurated presi- 
dent of the United States March 4, 1853, 
with W. R. King as vice president, and the 
following named gentlemen were afterward 
chosen to fill the positions in the cabinet: 
William S. Marcy, James Guthrie, Jeffer- 
son Davis, James C. Dobbin, Robert Mc- 
Clelland, James Campbell and Caleb Cush- 
ing. During the administration of President 
Pierce the Missouri compromise law was 
repealed, and all the territories of the Union 
were thrown open to slavery, and the dis- 
turbances in Kansas occurred. In 1857 he 
was succeeded in the presidency by James 
Buchanan, and retired to his home in Con- 
cord, New Hampshire. He always cherished 
his principles of slavery, and at the out- 
break of the rebellion he was an adherent of 
the cause of the Confederacy. He died at 
Concord, New Hampshire, October 8, 1869. 



JAMES B. WEAVER, well known as a 
leader of the Greenback and later of the 
Populist party, was born at Dayton, Ohio, 
June 12, 1833. He received his earlier 
education in the schools of his native town, 
and entered the law department of the Ohio 
University, at Cincinnati, from which he 
graduated in 1854. Removing to the grow- 
ing state of Iowa, he became connected 
with "The Iowa Tribune," at the state 
capital, Des Moines, as one of its editors. 
He afterward practiced law and was elected 
district attorney for the second judicial dis- 
trict of Iowa, on the Republican ticket in 
1866, which office he held for a short time. 
In 1867 Mr. Weaver was appointed assessor 
of internal revenue for the first district of 
Iowa, and filled that position until some- 
time in 1873. He was elected and served 
in the forty-sixth congress. In 1880 the 
National or Greenback party' in convention 
at Chicago, nominated James B. Weaver as 



I: 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPH1. 



its candidate (or the presidency. By a 
union of the Democratic and National 
parties in his district, he was elected to the 
forty-ninth congress, and re-elected to the 
same office in the fall of 1886. Mr. Weaver 
was conceded to be a very fluent speaker, 
and quite active in all political work. On 
July 4, 1892, at the National convention 
of the People's party, General James B. 
Weaver was chosen as the candidate for 
president of that organization, and during 
the campaign that followed, gained a na- 
tional reputation. 



ANTHONY JOSEPH DREXEL, one 
of the leading bankers and financiers of 
the United States, was born in Philadelphia, 
Pennsylvania, in 1826, and was the son of 
Francis M. Drexel, who had established 
the large banking institution of Drexel & 
Co., so well known. The latter was a native 
of Dornbirn, in the Austrian Tyrol. He 
studied languages and fine arts at Turin, 
Italy. On returning to his mountain home, 
in 1809, and finding it in the hands of the 
French, he went to Switzerland and later 
to Paris. In i8i2,aftera short visit home, 
he went to Berlin, where he studied paint- 
ing until 1 8 1 7, in which year he emigrated 
io America, and settled in Philadelphia. A 
few years later he went to Chili and Peru, 
where he executed some fine portraits of 
notable people, including General Simon 
Bolivar. After spending some time in Mex- 
ico, he returned to Philadelphia, and en- 
<'d in the banking business. In 1837 he 
founded the house of Drexel & Co. He 
died in 1K37, and was succeeded by his two 
son?. Anthony J. and Francis A. His son, 
Anthony J. Drexel, Jr. , entered the bank 
when he was thirteen years of age, before he 
was through with his schooling, and after 
that the history of the banking business of 



which he was the head, was the history of his; 
life. The New York house of Drexel, Mor- 
gan & Co. was established in 1850; the 
Paris house, Drexel, Harjes & Co., in 1867. 
The Drexel banking houses have supplied 
iand placed hundreds of millions of dollars 
n government, corporation, railroad and 
other loans and securities. The reputation 
of the houses has always been held on the 
highest plane. Mr. Drexel founded and 
heavily endowed the Drexel Institute, in 
Philadelphia, an institution to furnish better 
and wider avenues of employment to young 
people of both sexes. It has departments 
of arts, science, mechanical arts and domes- 
tic economy. Mr. Drexel, Jr. .departed this 
life June 30, 1893. 



SAMUEL FINLEY BREESE MORSE, 
inventor of the recording telegraph in- 
strument, was born in Charlestown, Massa- 
chusetts, April 27, 1 791. He graduated 
from Yale College in 1810, and took up art 
as his profession. He went to London with 
the great American painter, Washington 
Allston, and studied in the Royal Academy 
under Benjamin West. His "Dying Her- 
cules," his first effort in sculpture, took the 
gold medal in 1813. He returned to Amer- 
ica in 181 5 and continued to pursue his 
profession. He was greatly interested in 
scientific studies, which he carried on in 
connection with other labors. He found A 
the National Academy of Design and w 
many years its president. He returned to 
Europe and spent three years in study 
in the art centers, Rome, Florence, Venice 
and Paris. In 1 832 he returned to America 
and while on the return voyage the idea of 
a recording telegraph apparatus occurred to 
him, and he made a drawing to represent his 
conception. He was the first to occupy the 
chair of fine arts in the University of New 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



125 



York City, and in 1835 he set up his rude 
instrument in his room in the university. 
But it was not until after many years of 
discouragement and reverses of fortune that 
1 e finally was successful in placing his inven- 
tion before the public. In 1844, by aid of 
the United States government, he had con- 
structed a telegraph line forty miles in length 
from Washington to Baltimore. Over this 
line the test was made, and the first tele- 
graphic message was flashed May 24, 1844, 
from the United States supreme court rooms 
to Baltimore. It read, "What hath God 
wrought!" His fame and fortune were es- 
tablished in an instant. Wealth and honors 
poured in upon him from that day. The 
nations of Europe vied with each other 
in honoring the great inventor with medals, 
titles and decorations, and the learned 
societies of Europe hastened to enroll his 
name upon their membership lists and confer 
degrees. In 1S58 hewasthe recipient of an 
honor never accorded to an inventor before. 
The ten leading nations of Europe, at the 
suggestion of the Emporer Napoleon, ap- 
pointed representatives to an international 
congress, which convened at Paris for the 
special purpose of expressing gratitude of the 
nations, and they voted him a present of 
400,000 francs. 

Professor Morse was present at the unveil- 
ing of a bronze statue erected in his honor in 
Central Park, New York, in 1871. His last 
appearance in public was at the unveiling 
of the statue of Benjamin Franklin in New 
York in 1872, when he made the dedica- 
tory speech and unveiled the statue. He 
died April 2, 1S72, in the city of New York. 



MORRISO 
chief jus 



PRISON REMICH WAITE, seventh 
rstice of the United States, was 
born at Lyme, Connecticut, November 29, 
1816. He was a graduate from Yale Col- 



lege in 1837, in the class with William M. 
Evarts. His father was judge of the su- 
preme court of errors of the state of Con- 
necticut, and in his office young Waite 
studied law. He subsequently removed to 
Ohio, and was elected to the legislature of 
that state in 1849. He removed from 
Maumee City to Toledo and became a prom- 
inent legal light in that state. He was 
nominated as a candidate for congress re- 
peatedly but declined to run, and also de- 
clined a place on the supreme bench of the 
state. He won great distinction for his able 
handling of the Alabama claims at Geneva, 
before the arbitration tribunal in 1 871, and 
was appointed chief justice of the supreme 
court of the United States in 1874 on the 
death of Judge Chase. When, in 1876, elec- 
toral commissioners were chosen to decide 
the presidential election controversy between 
Tilden and Hayes, Judge Waite refused to 
serve on that commission. 

His death occurred March 23, 1888. 



ELISHA KENT KANE was one of the 
distinguished American explorers of the 
unknown regions of the frozen north, and 
gave to the world a more accurate knowl- 
edge of the Arctic zone. Dr. Kane was 
born February 3, 1820, at Philadelphia, 
Pennsylvania. He was a graduate of the 
universities of Virginia and Pennsylvania, 
and took his medical degree in 1843. He 
entered the service of the United States 
navy, and was physician to the Chinese 
embassy. Dr. Kane traveled extensively 
in the Levant, Asia and Western Africa, 
and also served in the Mexican war, in 
which he was severely wounded. His 
first Arctic expedition was under De Haven 
in the first Grinnell expedition in search 
of Sir John Franklin in 1850. He com- 
manded the second Grinnell expedition 



126 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



in 1853-55, and discovered an open polar 
sea. For this expedition he received a gold 
medal and other distinctions. He published 
a narrative of his first polar expedition in 
1853, and in 1856 published two volumes 
relating to his second polar expedition. He 
was a man of active, enterprising and cour- 
ageous spirit. His health, which was al- 
ways delicate, was impaired by the hard- 
ships of his Arctic expeditions, from which 
he never fully recovered and from which he 
died February 16, 1857, at Havana. 



ELIZABETH CADY STANTON was a 
daughter of Judge Daniel Cady and 
Margaret Livingston, and was born Novem- 
ber 12, 181 5, at Johnstown, New York. She 
• .as educated at the Johnstown Academy, 
.-here she studied with a class of boys, and 
was fitted for college at the age of fifteen, 
-iter which she pursued her studies at Mrs. 
A'illard's Seminary, at Troy. Her atten- 
;on was called to the disabilities of her sex 
• v her own educational experiences, and 
through a study of Blackstbne, Story, and 
Kent. Miss Cady was married to Henry B. 
Stanton in 1840, and accompanied him to 
the world's anti-slavery convention in Lon- 
don. While there she made the acquain- 
tance of Lucretia Mott. Mrs. Stanton 
resided at Boston until 1847, when the 
family moved to Seneca Falls, New York, 
and she and Lucretia Mott signed the first 
call for a woman's rights convention. The 
meeting was held at her place of residence 
July 19-20, 1848. This was the first oc- 
casion of a formal claim of suffrage for 
women that was made. Mrs. Stanton ad- 
dressed the New York legislature, in 1854, 
on the rights of married women, and in 
1 S60, in advocacy of the granting of di- 
vorce for drunkenness. She also addressed 
the legislature and the constitutional con- 



vention, and maintained that during the 
revision of the constitution the state was 
resolved into its original elements, and that 
all citizens had, therefore, a right to vote 
for the members of that convention. After 
18G9 Mrs. Stanton frequently addressed 
congressional committees and state consti- 
tutional conventions, and she canvassed 
Kansas, Michigan, and other states when 
the question of woman suffrage was sub- 
mitted in those states. Mrs. Stanton was 
one of the editors of the " Revolution," and 
most of the calls and resolutions for con- 
ventions have come from her pen. She 
was president of the national committee, 
also of the Woman's Loyal League, and 
of the National Association, for many years. 






DAVID DUDLEY FIELD, a great 
American jurist was born in Connecti- 
cut in 1805. He en.o.cd Williams College 
when sixteen years old, and commenced the 
study of law in 1S25. In 1828 he was ad- 
mitted to the bar, and went to New York, 
where he soon came into prominence be- 
fore the bar of that state. He entered upon 
the labor of reforming the practice and 
procedure, which was then based upon the 
common law practice of England, and had 
become extremely complicated, difficult and 
uncertain in its application. His first paper 
on this subject was published in 1839, and 
after eight years of continuous efforts in this 
direction, he was appointed one of a com- 
mission by New York to reform the practice 
of that state. The result was embodied in 
the two codes of procedure, civil and crimi- 
nal, the first of which was adopted almost 
entire by the state of New York, and has 
since been adopted by more than half the 
states in the Union, and became the basis 
of the new practice and procedure in Eng- 
land, contained in the Judicature act. He 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHT 



127 



was later appointed chairman cf a hew com- 
mission to codify the entire body of laws. 
This great work employed many years in its 
completion, but when finished it embraced 
a civil, penal, and political code, covering 
the entire field of American laws, statutory 
ana common. This great body of law was 
adopted by California and Dakota territory 
in its entirety, and many other states have 
since adopted its substance. In 1S67 the 
British Association for Social Science heard 
a proposition from Mr. Field to prepare an 
international code. This led to the prepara- 
tion of his " Draft Outlines of an Interna- 
tional Code," which was in fact a complete 
body of international laws, and introduced 
the principle of arbitration. Other of his 
codes of the state of New York have since 
been adopted by that state. 

In addition to his great works on law, 
Mr. Field indulged his literary tastes by fre- 
quent contributions to general literature, 
and his articles on travels, literature, and 
the political questions of the hour gave 
him rank with the best writers of his time. 
His father was the Rev. David Dudley Field, 
and his brothers were Cyrus W. Field, Rev. 
Henry Martin Field, and Justice Stephen 
J. Field of the United States supreme 
court. David Dudley Field died at New 
York, April 13, 1894. 



HENRY M. TELLER, a celebrated 
American politician, and secretary of 
the interior under President Arthur, was born 
May 23, 1830, in Allegany county, New 
York. He was of Hollandish ancestry and 
received an excellent education, after which 
he took up the study of law and was ad- 
mitted to the bar in the state of New York. 
Mr. Teller removed to Illinois in January, 
1858, and practiced for three years in that 
state. From thence he moved to Colorado 



in 1 86 1 and located at Central City, which 
was then one of the principal mining towns 
in the state. His exceptional abilities as 
a lawyer soon brought him into prominence 
and gained for him a numerous and profit- 
able clientage. In politics he affiliated with 
the Republican party, but declined to become 
a candidate for office until the admission of 
Colorado into the Union as a state, when 
he was elected to the United States senate. 
Mr. Teller drew the term ending March 
4, 1877, but was re-elected December 11, 
1876, and served until April 17, 1882, when 
he was appointed by President Arthur as 
secretary of the interior. He accepted a 
cabinet position with reluctance, and on 
March 3, 1S85, he retired from the cabinet, 
having been elected to the senate a short 
time before to succeed Nathaniel P. Hill. 
Mr. Teller took his seat on March 4, 1 885, 
in the senate, to which he was afterward 
re-elected. He served as chairman on the 
committee of pensions, patents, mines and 
mining, and was also a member of commit- 
tees on claims, railroads, privileges and 
elections and public lands. Mr. Teller came 
to be recognized as one of the ablest advo- 
cates of the silver cause. He was one of the 
delegates to the Republican National conven- 
tion at St. Louis in 1S96, in which he took 
an active part and tried to have a silver 
plank inserted in the platform of the party. 
Failing in this he felt impelled to bolt the 
convention, which he did and joined forces 
with the great silver movement in the cam- 
paign which followed, being recognized in 
that campaign as one of the most able and 
eminent advocates of "silver" in America. 



JOHN ERICSSON, an eminent inven- 
J tor and machinist, who won fame in 
America, was born in Sweden, July 31, 1803. 
In early childhood he evinced a decided in- 



128 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPH7'. 



clination to mechanical pursuits, and at the 
age of eleven he was appointed to a cadet- 
ship in the engineer corps, and at the age of 
seventeen was promoted to a lieutenancy. 
In 1826 he introduced a "flame engine," 
which he had invented, and offered it to 
English capitalists, but it was found that it 
could be operated only by the use of wood 
for fuel. Shortly after this he resigned his 
commission in the army of Sweden, and de- 
voted himself to mechanical pursuits. He 
discovered and introduced the principle of 
artificial draughts in steam boilers, and re- 
ceived a prize of two thousand five hundred 
dollars for his locomotive, the "Novelty," 
which attained a great speed, for that day. 
The artificial draught effected a great saving 
in fuel and made unnecessary the huge 
smoke-stacks formerly used, and the princi- 
ple is still applied, in modified form, in boil 
ers. He also invented a steam fire-engine, 
and later a hot-air engine, which he at- 
tempted to apply in the operation of his 
ship, "Ericsson," but as it did not give the 
speed required, he abandoned it, but after- 
wards applied it to machinery for pumping, 
hoisting, etc. 

Ericsson was first to apply the screw 
propeller to navigation. The English peo- 
ple not receiving this new departure readily, 
Ericsson came to America in 1839, and 
built the United States steamer, "Prince- 
ton," in which the screw-propeller was util- 
ized, the first steamer ever built in which 
the propeller was under water, out of range 
of the enemy's shots. The achievement 
which gave him greatest renown, however, 
was the ironclad vessel, the " Monitor," an 
entirely new type of vessel, which, in March, 
1S62, attacked the Confederate monster 
ironclad ram, "Virginia," and after a fierce 
struggle, compelled her to withdraw from 
Hampton Roads for repairs. After the war 



one of his most noted inventions was his 
vessel, " Destroyer," with a submarine gun, 
which carried a projectile torpedo. In 1886 
the king of Spain conferred on him the 
grand cross of the Order of Naval Merit. 
He died in March, 18S9, and his body was 
transferred, with naval honors, to the country 
of his birth. 

JAMES BUCHANAN, the fifteenth presi- 
dent of the United States, was a native 
of Pennsylvania, and was born in Franklin 
county, April 23, 1791. He was of Irish 
ancestry, his father having come to this 
country in 1783, in quite humble circum- 
stances, and settled in the western part of 
the Keystone state. 

James Buchanan remained in his se- 
cluded home for eight years, enjoying but 
few social or intellectual advantages. His 
parents were industrious and frugal, and 
prospered, and, in 1799, the family removed 
to Mercersbur Pennsylvania, where he 
was placed in school. His progress was 
rapid, and in 1801 he entered Dickinson 
College, at Carlisle, where he took his place 
among the best scholars in the institution. 
In 1809 he graduated with the highest hon- 
ors in his class. He was then eighteen, tall, 
graceful and in vigorous health. He com- 
menced the study of law at Lancaster, and 
was admitted to the bar in 1812. He rose 
very rapidly in his profession and took a 
stand with the ablest of his fellow lawyers. 
When but twenty-six years old he success- 
fully defended, unaided by counsel, one of 
the judges of the state who was before the 
bar of the state senate under articles of im- 
peachment. 

During the war of 1812-15, Mr. Buch- 
anan sustained the government with all his 
power, eloquently urging tin- vigorous prose- 
cution of the war, and enlisted as a private 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



129 



volunteer to assist in repelling the British 
who had sacked and burned the public 
buildings of Washington and threatened 
Baltimore. At that time Buchanan was 
a Federalist, but the opposition of that 
party to the war with Great Britain and the 
alien and sedition laws of John Adams, 
brought that party into disrepute, and drove 
many, among them Buchanan, into the Re- 
publican, or anti-Federalist ranks. He was 
elected to congress in 1828. In 1831 he 
was sent as minister to Russia, and upon 
his return to this country, in 1833, was ele- 
vated to the United States senate, and re- 
mained in that position for twelve years. 
Upon the accession of President Polk to 
office he made Mr. Buchanan secretary of 
state. Four years later he retired to pri- 
vate life, and in 1853 he was honored with 
the mission to England. In 1856 the na- 
tional Democratic convention nominated 
him for the presidency and he was elected. 
It was during his administration that the 
rising tide of the secession movement over- 
look the country. Mr. Buchanan declared 
that the national constitution gave him no 
power to do anything against the movement 
to break up the Union. After his succession 
by Abraham Lincoln in i860, Mr. Buchanan 
retired to his home at Wheatland, Pennsyl- 
vania, where he died June 1, 1868. 



JOHN HARVARD, the founder of the 
kJ Harvard University, was born in Eng- 
land about the year 160S. He received his 
education at Emanuel College, Cambridge, 
and came to America in 1637, settling in 
Massachusetts. He was a non-conformist 
minister, and a tract of land was set aside 
:or him in Charlestown, near Boston. He 
was at once appointed one of a committee to 
formulate a body of laws for the colony. 
One year before his arrival in the colony 



the general court had voted the sum of four 
hundred pounds toward the establishment of 
a school or college, half of which was to be 
paid the next year In 1637 preliminary 
plans were made for starting the school. In 
1638 John Harvard, who had shown great 
interest in the new institution of learning 
proposed, died, leaving his entire property, 
about twice the sum originally voted, to the 
school, together with three hundred volumes 
as a nucleus for a library. The institution 
was then given the name of Harvard, and 
established at Newton (now Cambridge), 
Massachusetts. It grew to be one of the two 
principal seats of learning in the new world, 
and has maintained its reputation since. It 
now consists of twenty-two separate build- 
ings, and its curriculum embraces over one 
hundred and seventy elective courses, and it 
ranks among the great universities of the 
world. 

ROGER BROOKE TANEY, a noted 
jurist and chief justice of the United 
States supreme court, was born in Calvert 
county, Maryland, March 17, 1777. He 
graduated fiom Dickinson College at the 
age of eighteen, took up the study of law, 
and was admitted to the bar in 1799. He 
was chosen to the legislature from his county, 
and in 1801 removed to Frederick, Mary- 
land. He became United States senator 
from Maryland in 18 16, and took up his 
permanent residence in Baltimore a few 
years later. In 1824 he became an ardent 
admirer and supporter of Andrew Jackson, 
and upon Jackson's election to the presi- 
dency, was appointed attorney general of 
the United States. Two years later he was 
appointed secretary of the treasury, and 
after serving in that capacity for nearly one 
year, the senate refused to confirm the ap- 
pointment. In 1835, upon the death of 



130 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



Chief-justice Marshal!, lie was appointed to 
that place, and a political change having 
occurred in the make up of the senate, he 
was confirmed in 1836. He presided at 
his first session in January of the following 
year. 

The case which suggests itself first to 
the average reader in connection with this 
jurist is the celebrated " Dred Scott " case, 
which came before the supreme court for 
decision in 1856. In his opinion, delivered 
on behalf of a majority of the court, one 
remarkable statement occurs as a result of 
an exhaustive survey of the historical 
grounds, to the effect that " for more than 
a century prior to the adoption of the con- 
stitution they (Africans) had been regarded 
so far inferior that they had no rights which 
a white man was bound to respect." Judge 
Taney retained the office of chief justice 
until his death, in 1864. 



JOHN LOTHROP MOTLEY.— This gen- 
tleman had a world-wide reputation as 
an historian, which placed him in the front 
rank of the great men of America. He was 
born April 15, 18 14, at Dorchester, Massa- 
chusetts, was given a thorough preparatory 
education and then attended Harvard, from 
which he was graduated in 1 83 1 . He also 
studied at Gottingen and Berlin, read law 
and in 1836 was admitted to the bar. In 
1841 he was appointed secretary of the 
legation at St. Petersburg, and in 1866-67 
served as United States minister to Austria, 
serving in the same capacity during 1869 
and 1870 to England. In 1S56, after long 
and exhaustive research and preparation, he 
published in London "The Rise of the 
Dutch Republic." It embraced three vol- 
umes and immediately attracted great at- 
tention throughout Europe and America as 
a work of unusual merit. From 1861 to 



1868 he produced "The History of the 
United Netherlands," in four volumes. 
Other works followed, with equal success, 
and his position as one of the foremost his 
torians and writers of his day was firmly 
established. His death occured May 29, 
■877- 

ELIAS HOWE, the inventor of the sew- 
ing machine, well deserves to be classed 
among the great and noted men of Amer- 
ica. He was the son of a miller and farmer 
and was born at Spencer, Massachusetts, 
July 9, 1 8 19. In 1835 he went to Lowell 
and worked there, and later at Boston, in the 
machine shops. His first sewing machine 
was completed in 1845, and he patented it in 
1846, laboring with the greatest persistency 
in spite of poverty and hardships, working 
for a time as an engine driver on a railroad 
at pauper wages and with broken health. 
He then spent two years of unsuccessful ex- 
ertion in England, striving in vain to bring 
his invention into public notice and use. 
He returned to the United States in almost 
hopeless poverty, to find that his patent 
had been violated. At last, however, he 
found friends who assisted him financially, 
and after years of litigation he made good 
his claims in the courts in 1854. His inven- 
tion afterward brought him a large fortune. 
During the Civil war he volunteered as a 
private in the Seventeenth Connecticut Vol- 
unteers, and served for some time. During 
his life time he received the cross of the 
Legion of Honor and many other medals. 
His death occurred October 3, 1867, at 
Brooklyn, New York. 



PHILLIPS BROOKS, celebrated as an 
eloquent preacher and able pulpit 
tor, was born in Boston on the 13th d 
December, 1835. He received exc 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



131 



educational advantages, and graduated at 
Harvard in 1855. Early in life he decided 
upon the ministry as his life work and 
studied theology in the Episcopal Theolog- 
ical Seminary, at Alexandria, Virginia. In 
1859 he was ordained and the same year 
became pastor of the Church of the Advent, 
in Philadelphia. Three years later he as- 
sumed the pastorate of the Church of the 
Holy Trinity, where he remained until 1870. 
At the expiration of that time he accepted 
the pastoral charge of Trinity Church in 
Boston, where his eloquence and ability at- 
tracted much attention and built up a pow- 
erful church organization. Dr. Brooks also 
devoted considerable time to lecturing and 
literary work and attained prominence in 
these lines. 



WILLIAM B. ALLISON, a statesman 
of national reputation and one of the 
leaders of the Republican party, was born 
March 2, 1829, at Perry, Ohio. He grew 
up on his father's farm, which he assisted 
in cultivating, and attended the district 
school. When sixteen years old he went 
to the academy at Wooster, and subse- 
quently spent a year at the Allegheny Col- 
lege, at Meadville, Pennsylvania. He next 
taught school and spent another year at the 
Western Reserve College, at Hudson, Ohio. 
Mr. Allison then took up the study of law 
at Wooster, where he was admitted to the 
barini85i, and soon obtained a position 
as deputy county clerk. His political lean- 
ings were toward the old line Whigs, who 
afterward laid the foundation of the Repub- 
lican party. He was a delegate to the state 
convention in 1856, in the campaign of 
which he supported Fremont for president. 
Mr Allison removed to Dubuque, Iowa, 
in the following year. He rapidly rose to 
prominence at the bar and in politics. In 



i860 he was chosen as a delegate to the 
Republican convention held in Chicago, of 
which he was elected one of the secretaries. 
At the outbreak of the civil war he was ap- 
pointed on the staff of the governor. His 
congressional career opened in 1862, when 
he was elected to the thirty-eighth congress; 
he was re-elected three times, serving from 
March 4, 1S63, to March 3, 1S71. He was 
a member of the ways and means committee 
a good part of his term. His career in the 
United States senate began in 1873, and he 
rapidly rose to eminence in national affairs, 
his service of a quarter of a century in that 
body being marked by close fealty to the 
Republican party. He twice declined the 
portfolio of the treasury tendered him by 
Garfield and Harrison, and his name was 
prominently mentioned for the presidency 
at several national Republican conventions. 



IVl tUI 



ARY ASHTON LIVERMORE, lec- 
irer and writer, was born in Boston, 
December 19, 1821. She was the daughter 
of Timothy Rice, and married D. P. Liver- 
more, a preacher of the Universalist church. 
She contributed able articles to many of the 
most noted periodicals of this country and 
England. During the Civil war she labored 
zealously and with success on behalf of the 
sanitary commission which played so impor- 
tant a part during that great struj^le. She 
became editor of the " Woman's Journal," 
published at Boston in 1870. 

She held a prominent place as a public 
speaker and writer on woman's suffrage, 
temperance, social and religious questions, 
and her influence was great in evurv cause 
she advocated. 



JOHN B. GOUGH, a noted temperance 
lecturer, who won his fame in America, 
was born in the village of Sandgate, Kent, 



132 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



England, August 22, 1817. He came to 
the United States at the age of twelve. 
He followed the trade of bookbinder, and 
lived in great poverty on account of the 
liquor habit. In 1843, however, he re- 
formed, and began his career as a temper- 
ance lecturer. He worked zealously in the 
cause of temperance, and his lectures and 
published articles revealed great earnestness. 
He formed temperance societies throughout 
the entire country, and labored with great 
success. He visited England in the same 
cause about the year 1853 and again in 
1878. He also lectured upon many other 
topics, in which he attained a wide reputa- 
tion. His death occurred February 18, 
1886. 

THOMAS BUCHANAN READ, author, 
sculptor and painter, was born in Ches- 
ter county, Pennsylvania, March 12, 1822. 
He early evinced a taste for art, and began 
the study of sculpture in Cincinnati. Later 
he found painting more to his liking. He 
went to New York, where he followed this 
profession, and later to Boston. In 1846 
he located in Philadelphia. He visited 
Italy in 1850, and studied at Florence, 
where he resided almost continuously for 
twenty-two years. He returned to America 
in 1872, and died in New York May 11 of 
the same year. 

He was the author of many heroic 
poems, but the one giving him the most re- 
nown is his famous "Sheridan's Ride," of 
which he has also left a representation in 
painting. 

EUGENE V. DEBS, the former famous 
president of the American Railway 
Union, and great labor leader, was born in 
the city of Terre Haute, Indiana, in 1855. 
He received his education in the public 



schools of that place and at the age of 
sixteen years began work as a painter in 
the Vandalia shops. After this, for some 
three years, he was employed as a loco- 
motive fireman on the same road. His 
first appearance in public life was in his 
canvass for the election to the office of city 
clerk of Terre Haute. In this capacity he 
served two terms, and when twenty six 
years of age was elected a member of the 
legislature of the state of Indiana. While 
a member of that body he secured the 
passage of several bills in the interest of 
organized labor, of which he was always 
a faithful champion. Mr. Debs' speech 
nominating Daniel Voorhees for the United 
States senate gave him a wide reputation for 
oratory. On the expiration of his term in 
the legislature, he was elected grand secre- 
tary and treasurer of the Brotherhood of 
Locomotive Fireman and filled that office 
for fourteen successive years. He was 
always an earnest advocate of confederation 
of railroad men and it was mainly through 
his efforts that the United Order of Railway 
Employes, composed of the Brotherhood 
of Railway Trainmen and Conductors, 
Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen and 
the Switchmen's Mutual Aid Association was 
formed, and he became a member of its 
supreme council. The order was dissolved 
by disagreement between two of its leading 
orders, and then Mr. Debs conceived the 
idea of the American Railway Union. He 
worked on the details and the union came 
into existence in Chicago, June 20, 1 893. For 
a time it prospered and became one of the 
largest bodies of railway men in the world. 
It won in a contest with the Great Northern 
Railway. In the strike made by the union 
in sympathy with the Pullman employes 
inaugurated in Chicago June 25, 1S94. and 
the consequent rioting, the Railway Union 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHT. 



1&3 



lost much prestige and Mr. Debs, in company 
with others of the officers, being held as in con- 
tempt of the United States courts, he suffered 
a sentence of six months in jail at Wood- 
stock, McHenry county, Illinois. In 1897 
Mr. Debs, on the demise of the American 
Railway Union, organized the Social 
Democracy, an institution founded on the 
best lines of the communistic idea, which 
was to provide homes and employment for 
its members. 



JOHN G. CARLISLE, famous as a law- 
yer, congressman, senator and cabinet 
officer, was born in Campbell (now Kenton) 
county, Kentucky, September 5, 1835, on a 
farm. He received the usual education oi 
the time and began at an early age to teach 
school and, at the same time, the study of 
law. Soon opportunity offered and he 
entered an office in Covington, Kentucky, 
and was admitted to practice at the bar in 
1858. Politics attracted his attention and 
in 1859 he was elected to the house of rep- 
resentatives in the legislature of his native 
state. On the outbreak of the war in 1861, 
he embraced the cause of the Union and was 
largely instrumental in preserving Kentucky 
to the federal cause. He resumed his legal 
practice for a time and declined a nomina- 
tion as presidential elector in 1864. ' In 
1866 and again in 1869 Mr. Carlisle was 
elected to the senate of Kentucky. He re- 
signed this position in 1871 and was chosen 
lieutenant governor of the state, which office 
he held until 1875. He was one of the 
presidential electors-at-large for Ken- 
tucky in 1876. He first entered congress in 
1877, and soon became a prominent leader 
on the Democratic side of the house of rep- 
resentatives, and continued a member of 
that body through the forty-sixth, forty- 
seventh, forty-eighth and forty-ninth con- 



gresses, and was speaker of the house during 
the two latter. He was elected to the 
United States senate to succeed Senator 
Blackburn, and remained a member of that 
branch of congress until March, 1S93, when 
he was appointed secretary of the treasury. 
He performed the duties of that high office 
until March 4, 1897, throughout the en- 
tire second administration of President 
Cleveland. His ability and many years of 
public service gave him a national reputa- 
tion. 



FRANCES E. WILLARD, for many years 
president of the -Woman's Christian 
Temperance Union, and a noted American 
lecturer and writer, was born in Rochester, 
New York, September 28, 1839. Graduating 
from the Northwestern Female College at the 
age of nineteen she began teaching and met 
with great success in many cities of the west. 
She was made directress of Genesee Wes- 
leyan Seminary at Lima, Ohio, in 1867, and 
four years later was elected president of the 
Evanston College for young ladies, a branch 
of the Northwestern University. 

During the two years succeeding 1869 
she traveled extensively in Europe and the 
east, visiting Egypt and Palestine, and 
gathering materials for a valuable course of 
lectures, which she delivered at Chicago on 
her return. She became very popular, and 
won great influence in the temperance 
cause. Her work as president of the Wo- 
man's Christian Temperance Union greatly 
strengthened that society, and she made 
frequent trips to Europe in the interest of 
that cause. 

RICHARD OLNEY.— Among the promi- 
nent men who were members of the 
cabinet of President Cleveland in his second 
administration, the gentleman whose nama 



134 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRATHT. 



heads this sketch held a leading place, oc- 
cupying the positions of . attorney general 
and secretary of State. 

Mr. Olney came from one of the oldest 
and most honored New England families; 
the first of his ancestors to come from Eng- 
land settled in Massachusetts in 1635. This 
was Thomas Olney. He was a friend and 
co-religionist of Roger Williams, and when 
the latter moved to what is now Rhode 
Island, went with him and became one of 
the founders of Providence Plantations. 

Richard Olney was born in Oxford, 
Massachusetts, in 1835, and received the 
elements of his earlier education in the com- 
mon schools which New England is so proud 
of. He entered Brown University, from 
which he graduated in 1856, and passed the 
Harvard law school two years later. He 
began the practice of his profession with 
judge B. F. Thomas, a prominent man of 
that locality. For years Richard Olney was 
regarded as one of the ablest and most 
learned lawyers in Massachusetts. Twice 
he was offered a place on the bench of the 
supreme court of the state, but both times 
he declined. He was always a Democrat 
in his political tenets, and for many years 
was a trusted counsellor of members of that 
party. In 1874 Mr. Olney was elected a 
member of the legislature. In 1876, during 
the heated presidential campaign, to 
strengthen the cause of Mr. Tilden in the 
New England states, it was intimated that 
iri the event of that gentleman's election to 
the presidency, Mr. Olney would be attor- 
ney peneral. 

When Grover Cleveland was elected presi- 
f*«"«lt of the United States, on his inaugura- 
tion in March, 1893, he tendered the posi- 
tion of attorney general to Richard Olney. 
This was accepted, and that gentleman ful- 
filled the duties of the office until the death 



of Walter Q. Gresham, in May, 1895. made 
vacant the position of secretary of state. 
This post was filled by the appointment of 
Mr. Olney. While occupying the later 
office, Mr. Olney brought himself into inter- 
national prominence by some very able state 
papers. 

JOHN JAY KNOX, for many yearscomp- 
troller of the currency, and an eminent 
financier, was born in Knoxboro, Oneida 
count}', New York, May 19. 1828. He re- 
ceived a good education and graduated at 
Hamilton College in 1849. For about 
thirteen years he was engaged as a private 
banker, or in a position in a bank, where 
he laid the foundation of his knowledge of 
the laws of finance. In 1862, Salmon P. 
Chase, then secretary of the treasury, ap- 
pointed him to an office in that department 
of the government, and later he had charge 
of the mint coinage correspondence. In 1867 
Mr. Knox was made deputy comptroller 
of the currency, and in that capacity, in 
1870, he made two reports on the mint 
service, with a codification of the mint and 
coinage laws of the United States, and 
suggesting many important amendments 
These reports were ordered printed by reso- 
lution of congress. The bill which he pre- 
pared, with some slight changes, was sub- 
sequently passed, and has been known in 
history as the " Coinage Act of 1873." 

In 1872 Mr. Knox wcs appointed comp- 
troller of the currency, and held that re- 
sponsible position until 1884, when he re- 
signed. He then accepted the position of 
president of the National Bank of the Re- 
public, of New York City, which institution 
he served for many years. He was the 
author of " United States Notes," published 
in 1884. In the reports spoken of above, a 
history of the two United States banks i= 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



135 



given, together with that of the state and 
national banking system, and much valuable 
statistical matter relating to kindred sub- 
jects. 

NATHANIEL HAWTHORNE.— In the 
opinion of many critics Hawthorne is 
pronounced the foremost American novelist, 
and in his peculiar vein of romance is said 
to be without a peer. His reputation is 
world-wide, and his ability as a writer is 
recognized abroad as well as at home. 
He was born July 4, 1804, at Salem, Massa- 
chusetts. On account of feeble health he 
spent some years of his boyhood on a farm 
near Raymond, Maine. He laid the foun- 
dation of a liberal education in his youth, 
and entered Bowdoin College, from which 
he graduated in 1825 in the same class with 
H W Longfellow and John S. C. Abbott. 
He then returned to Salem, where he gave 
his attention to literature, publishing several 
tales and other articles in various periodi- 
cals. His first venture in the field of ro- 
mance, " Fanshaw,'' proved a failure. In 
1836 he removed to Boston, and' became 
editor of the "American Magazine," which 
soon passed out of existence. In 1837 he 
published "Twice Told Tales," which were 
chiefly made up of his former contributions 
to magazines. In 1838-41 he held a posi- 
tion in the Boston custom house, but later 
took part in the "Brook farm experiment," 
a socialistic idea after the plan of Fourier. 
In 1843 he was married and took up his 
residence at the old parsonage at Concord, 
Massachusetts, which he immortalized in 
his next work, "Mosses From an Old 
Manse," published in 1846. From the lat- 
ter date until 1850 he was surveyor of the 
port of Salem, and while thus employed 
wrote one of his strongest works, "The 
Scarlet Letter." For the succeeding two 

8 



years Lenox, Massachusetts, was his home, 
and the " House of the Seven Gables" was 
produced there, as well as the " Blithedale 
Romance." In 1852 he published a "Life 
of Franklin Pierce," a college friend whom 
he warmly regarded. In 1853 he was ap- 
pointed United States consul to Liverpool, 
England, where he remained some years, 
after which he spent some time in Italy. 
On returning to his native land he took up 
his residence at Concord, Massachusetts. 
While taking a trip for his health with ex- 
President Pierce, he died at Plymouth, New 
Hampshire, May 19, 1864. In addition to 
the works mentioned above Mr. Hawthorne 
gave to the world the following books: 
" True Stories from History," "The Won- 
der Book," " The Snow Image," "Tangle- 
wood Tales," "The Marble Faun," and 
' ' Our Old Home. " After his death appeared 
a series of "Notebooks," edited by his wife, 
Sophia P. Hawthorne; " Septimius Felton," 
edited by his daughter, Una, and " Dr. 
Grimshaw's Secret," put into shape by his 
talented son, Julian. He left an unfinished 
work called " Dolliver Romance," which has 
been published just as he left it. 



ABRAHAM LINCOLN, sixteenth presi- 
dent of the United States, was born 
February 12, 1809, in Larue county (Har- 
din county), Kentucky, in a log-cabin near 
Hudgensville. When he was eight years 
old he removed with his parents to Indiana, 
near the Ohio river, and a year later his 
mother died. His father then married Mrs. 
Elizabeth (Bush) Johnston, of Elizabeth- 
town, Kentucky, who proved a kind of fos- 
ter-mother to Abraham, and encouraged 
him to study. He worked as a farm hand 
and as a clerk in a store at Gentryville, and 
was noted for his athletic feats and strength, 
fondness for debate, a fund of humorous 



136 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



anecdote, as well as the composition of rude 
verses. He made a trip at the age of nine- 
teen to New Orleans on a flat-boat, and set- 
tled in Illinois in 1830. He assisted his 
father to build a log house and clear a farm 
on the Sangamon river near Decatur, Illinois, 
and split the rails with which to fence it. In 
185 1 he was employed in the building of a 
flat-boat on the Sangamon, and to run it to 
New Orleans. The voyage gave him anew 
insight into the horrors of slavery in the 
south. On his return he settled at New 
Salem and engaged, first as a clerk in a store, 
then as grocer, surveyor and postmaster, and 
he piloted the first steamboat that as- 
cended the Sangamon. He participated in 
the Black Hawk war as captain of volun- 
teers, and after his return he studied law, 
interested himself in politics, and became 
prominent locally as a public speaker. He 
was elected to the legislature in 1834 as a 
" Clay Whig," and began at once to dis- 
play a command of language and forcible 
rhetoric that made him a match for his 
more cultured opponents. He was ad- 
mitted to the bar in 1837, and began prac- 
tice at Springfield. He married a lady of a 
prominent Kentucky family in 1842. He 
was active in the presidential campaigns of 
1840 and 1844 and was an elector on the 
Harrison and Clay tickets, and was elected 
to congress in 1846, over Peter Cartwright. 
He voted for the Wilmot proviso and the 
abolition of slavery in the District of Colum- 
bia, and opposed the war with Mexico, but 
gained little prominence during his two 
years' service. He then returned to Spring- 
field and devoted his attention to law, tak- 
ing little interest in politics, until the repeal 
of the Missouri compromise and the passage 
of the Kansas-Nebraska bill in 1854. This 
awakened his interest in politics again and 
he attacked the champion of that measure, 



Stephen A. Douglas, in a speech at Spring- 
field that made him famous, and is said 
by those who heard it to be the greatest 
speech of his life. Lincoln was selected as 
candidate for the United States senate, but 
was defeated by Trumbull. Upon the pas- 
sage of the Kansas-Nebraska bill the Whig 
party suddenly went to pieces, and the Re- 
publican party gathered head. At the 
Bloomington Republican convention in 1856 
Lincoln made an effective address in which 
he first took a position antagonistic to the ex- 
istence of slavery. He was a Fremont elector 
and received a strong support for nomina- 
tion as vice-president in the Philadelphia 
convention. In 1858 he was the unanimous 
choice of the Republicans for the United 
States senate, and the great campaign of de- 
bate which followed resulted in the election 
of Douglas, but established Lincoln's repu- 
tation as the leading exponent of Republican 
doctrines. He began to be mentioned in 
Illinois as candidate for the presidency, and 
a course of addresses in the eastern states 
attracted favorable attention. When the 
national convention met at Chicago, his 
rivals, Chase, Seward, Bates and others, 
were compelled to retire before the western 
giant, and he was nominated, with Hannibal 
Hamlin as his running mate. The Demo- 
cratic party had now been disrupted, and 
Lincoln's election assured. He carried 
practically every northern state, and the 
secession of South Carolina, followed by a 
number of the gulf states, took place before 
his inauguration. Lincoln is the only presi- 
dent who was ever compelled to reach 
Washington in a secret manner. He es- 
caped assassination by avoiding Baltimore, 
and was quietly inaugurated March 4, 1861. 
His inaugural address was firm but con- 
ciliatory, and he said to the secessionists: 
" You have no oath registered in heaven 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



137 



to destroy the government, while I have the 
most solemn one to preserve, protect and 
defend it.' He made up his cabinet chiefly 
of those political rivals in his own party — 
Seward, Chase, Cameron, Bates — and se- 
cured the co-operation of the Douglas Dem- 
ocrats. His great deeds, amidst the heat 
and turmoil of war, were: His call for 
seventy-five thousand volunteers, and the 
blockading of southern ports; calling of con- 
gress in extra session, July 14, 1861, and 
obtaining four hundred thousand men and 
four hundred million dollars for the prosecu- 
tion of the war; appointing Stanton secre- 
tary of war; issuing the emancipation proc- 
lamation; calling three hundred thou- 
sand volunteers; address at Gettysburg 
cemetery; commissioned Grant as lieuten- 
ant-general and commander-in-chief of the 
armies of the United States; his second 
inaugural address; his visit to the army be- 
fore Richmond, and his entry into Rich- 
mond the day after its surrender. 

Abraham Lincoln was shot by John 
Wilkes Booth in a box in Ford's theater 
at Washington the night of April 14, 1865, 
and expired the following morning. His 
body was buried at Oak Ridge cemetery, 
Springfield, Illinois, and a monument com- 
memorating his great work marks his resting 
place. 

STEPHEN GIRARD, the celebrated 
philanthropist, was born in Bordeaux, 
France, May 24, 1750. He became a sailor 
engaged in the American coast trade, and 
also made frequent trips to the West Indies. 
During the Revolutionary war he was a 
grocer and liquor seller in Philadelphia. 
He married in that city, and afterward 
separated from his wife. After the war he 
again engaged in the coast and West India 
trade, and his fortune began to accumulate 



from receiving goods from West Indian 
planters during the insurrection in Hayti, 
little of which was ever called for again. 
He became a private banker in Philadelphia 
in 1 812, and afterward was a director in the 
United States Bank. He made much money 
by leasing property in the city in times of 
depression, and upon the revival of industry 
sub-leasing at enormous profit. He became 
the wealthiest citizen of the United States 
of his time. 

He was eccentric, ungracious, and a 
freethinker. He had few, if any, friends in 
his lifetime. However, he was most chari- 
tably disposed, and gave to charitable in- 
stitutions and schools with a liberal hand. 
He did more than any one else to relieve 
the suffering and deprivations during the 
great yellow fever scourge in Philadelphia, 
devoting his personal attention to the sick. 
He endowed and made a free institution, 
the famous Will's Eye and Ear Infirmary 
of Philadelphia — one of the largest institu- 
tions of its kind in the world. At his death 
practically all his immense wealth was be- 
queathed to charitable institutions, more 
than two millions of dollars going to the 
founding of Girard College, which was to 
be devoted to the education and training of 
boys between the ages of six and ten years. 
Large donations were also made to institu- 
tions in Philadelphia and New Orleans. 
The principal building of Girard College is 
the most magnificent example of Greek 
architecture in America. Girard died De- 
cember 26, 183 1. 



LOUIS J. R. AGASSIZ, the eminent nat- 
uralist and geologist, was born in the 
parish of Motier, near Lake Neuchatel, Swit- 
zerland, May 28, 1807, but attained his 
greatest fame after becoming an American 
citizen. He studied the medical sciences at 



138 



COMPEXDU'M OF BIOGRAPHP 



Zurich, Heidelberg and Munich. His first 
work was a Latin description of the fishes 
which Martius and Spix brought from Brazil. 
This was published in 1 829-3 1 . He devoted 
much time to the study of fossil fishes, and 
in 1832 was appointed professor of natural 
history at Neuchatel. He greatly increased 
his reputation by a great work in French, 
entitled " Researches on Fossil Fishes," in 
1832-42, in which he made many important 
improvements in the classification of fishes. 
Having passed many summers among the 
Alps in researches on glaciers, he propounded 
some new and interesting ideas on geology, 
and the agency of glaciers in his "Studies 
by the Glaciers." This was published in 
1840. This latter work, with his " System 
of the Glaciers," published in 1847, are 
among his principal works. 

In 184G, Professor Agassiz crossed the 
ocean on a scientific excursion to the United 
States, and soon determined to remain here. 
He accepted, about the beginning of 1848, 
the chair of zoology and geology at Harvard. 
He explored the natural history of the 
United States at different times and gave an 
impulse to the study of nature in this 
country. In 1865 he conducted an expedi- 
tion to Brazil, and explored the lower Ama- 
zon and its tributaries. In 1868 he was 
made non-resident professor of natural his- 
tory at Cornell University. In December, 
1 87 1, he accompanied the Hassler expedi- 
tion, under Professor Pierce, to the South 
Atlantic and Pacific oceans. He died at 
Cambridge, Massachusetts, December 14, 
1873. 

Among other of the important works of 
Professor Agassiz may be mentioned the fol- 
lowing: "Outlines of Comparative Physi- 
ology," "Journey to Brazil," and "Contri- 
butions to the Natural History of the United 
States." It is said of Professor Agassiz, 



that, perhaps, with the exception of Hugh 
Miller, no one had so popularized science in 
his day, or trained so many young natural- 
ists. Many of the theories held by Agassiz 
are not supported by many of the natural- 
ists of these later days, but upon many of 
the speculations into the origin of species and 
in physics he has left the marks of his own 
strongly marked individuality. 



WILLIAM WINDOM.— As a prominent 
and leading lawyer of the great north- 
west, as a member of both houses of con- 
gress, and as the secretary of the treasury, 
the gentleman whose name heads this sketch 
won for himself a prominent position in the 
history of our country. 

Mr. Windom was a native of Ohio, 
born in Belmont county, May 10, 1827. 
He received a good elementary education in 
the schools of his native state, and took up 
the study of law. He was admitted to the 
bar, and entered upon the practice of his 
profession in Ohio, where he remained until 
1855. In the latter year he made up his 
mind to move further west, and accordingly 
went to Minnesota, and opening an office, 
became identified with the interests of that 
state, and the northwest generally. In 
1858 he took his place in the Minnesota 
delegation in the national house of repre- 
sentatives, at Washington, and continued 
to represent his constituency in that body 
for ten years. In 1871 Mr. Windom was 
elected United States senator from Min- 
nesota, and was re-elected to the same office 
after fulfilling the duties of the position for 
a full term, in 1876. On the inauguration 
of President Garfield, in March, 1881, Mr. 
Windom became secretary of the treasury 
in his cabinet. He resigned this office Oc- 
tober 27, 1 88 1 , and was elected senator 
from the North Star state to fill the va- 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHT. 



139 



cancy caused by the resignation of A. J. 
Edferton. Mr. Windom served in that 
chamber until March, 1883. 

William Windom died in New York 
City January 29, 1891. 



DON M. DICKINSON, an American 
politician and lawyer, was born in 
Port Ontario, New York, January 17, 1846. 
He removed with his parents to Michigan 
when he was but two years old. He was 
educated in the public schools of Detroit 
and at the University of Michigan at Ann 
Arbor, and was admitted to the bar at the 
age of twenty-one. In 1872 he was made 
secretary of the Democratic state central 
committee of Michigan, and his able man- 
agement of the campaign gave him a prom- 
inent place in the councils of his party. In 
1876, during the Tilden campaign, he acted 
as chairman of the state central committee. 
He was afterward chosen to represent his 
state in the Democratic national committee, 
and in 1886 he was appointed postmaster- 
general by President Cleveland. After the 
expiration of his term of office he returned 
to Detroit and resumed the practice of law. 
In the presidential campaign of 1896, Mr. 
Dickinson adhered to the "gold wing" of 
the Democracy, and his influence was felt 
in the national canvass, and especially in 
his own state. 



JOHN iACOB ASTOR, the founder of 
the Astor family and fortunes, while not 
a native of this country, was one of the 
most noted men of his time, and as all his 
wealth and fame were acquired here, he 
may well be classed among America's great 
men. He was born near Heidelberg, Ger- 
many, July 17, 1763, and when twenty 
years old emigrated to the United States. 
Even at that aire he exhibited remarkable 



business ability and foresight, and soon he 
was investing capital in furs which he took 
to London and sold at a great profit. He 
next settled at New York, and engaged ex- 
tensively in the fur trade. He exported 
furs to Europe in his own vessels, which re- 
turned with cargoes of foreign commodities, 
and thus he rapidly amassed an immense 
fortune. In 181 1 he founded Astoria on 
the western coast of North America, near 
the mouth of the Columbia river, as a depot 
for the fur trade, for the promotion of 
which he sent a number of expeditions to 
the Pacific ocean. He also purchased a 
large amount of real estate in New York, 
the value of which increased enormously 
All through life his business ventures were 
a series of marvelous successes, and he 
ranked as one of the most sagacious and 
successful business men in the world. He 
diea March 29, 1848, leaving a fortune es- 
timated at over twenty million dollars to 
his children, who have since increased it. 
John Jacob Astor left $400,000 to found a 
public library in New York City, and his son, 
William B. Astor, who died in 1875, left 
$300,000 to add to his father's bequest. 
This is known as the Astor Library, one of 
the largest in the United States. 



SCHUYLER COLFAX, an eminent 
American statesman, was born in New 
York City, March 23, 1823, being a grand- 
son of General William Colfax, the com- 
mander of Washington's life-guards. In 
1836 he removed with his mother, who was 
then a widow, to Indiana, settling at South 
Bend. Young Schuyler studied law, and 
in 1845 became editor of the "St. Joseph 
Valley Register, " a Whig paper published 
at South Bend. He was a member of the 
convention which formed a new constitu- 
tion for Indiana in 1850, and he opposed 



1J0 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



the clause that prohibited colored men 
from settling in that state. In 185 i he was 
defeated as the Whig candidate for congress 
but was elected in 1854, and, being repeat- 
edly re-elected, continued to represent that 
district in congress until 1869. He became 
one of the most prominent and influential 
members of the house of representatives, 
and served three terms as speaker. During 
the Civil war he was an active participant 
in all public measures of importance, and 
was a confidential friend and adviser of 
President Lincoln. In May, 1868, Mr. 
Colfax was nominated for vice-president on 
the ticket with General Grant, and was 
elected. After the close of his term he re- 
tired from office, and for the remainder of 
his life devoted much of his time to lectur- 
ing and literary pursuits. His death oc- 
curred January 23, 1SS5. He was one of 
the most prominent members of the Inde- 
pendent Order of Odd Fellows in America, 
and that order erected a bronze statue to 
his memory in University Park. Indianapo- 
lis, Indiana, which was unveiled in May, 
1887. 

WILLIAM FREEMAN VILAS, who at- 
tained a national reputation as an able 
lawyer, statesman, and cabinet officer, was 
born at Chelsea, Vermont, July 9, 1840. 
His parents removed to Wisconsin when 
our subject was but eleven years of age, 
and there with the early settlers endured all 
the hardships and trials incident to pioneer 
life. William p. Vilas was given all the 
advantages found in the common schools, 
and supplemented this by a course of study 
in the Wisconsin State University, after 
which he studied law, was admitted to the 
bar and began practicing at Madison. 
Shortly afterward the Civil war broke out 
and Mr. Vilas enlisted and became colonel 



of the Twenty-third regiment of Wisconsin 
Volunteers, serving throughout the war with 
distinction. At the close of the war he re- 
turned to Wisconsin, resumed his law prac- 
tice, and rapidly rose to eminence in this 
profession. In 1885 he was selected by 
President Cleveland for postmaster-general 
and at the close of his term again returned 
to Madison, Wisconsin, to resume the prac- 
tice of law. 

THOMAS McINTYRE COOLEY, an em- 
inent American jurist and law writer, 
was born in Attica, New York, January 6, 
1824. He was admitted to the bar in 1846, 
and four years later was appointed reporter 
of the supreme court of Michigan, which 
office he continued to hold for seven years. 
In the meantime, in 1859, he became pro- 
fessor of the law department of the Univer- 
sity of Michigan, and soon afterward was 
made dean of the faculty of that depart- 
ment. In 1864 he was elected justice of 
the supreme court of Michigan, in 1867 be- 
came chief justice of that court, and in 
1869 was re-elected for a term of eight 
years. In 1 88 1 he again joined the faculty 
of the University of Michigan, assuming the 
professorship of constitutional and adminis- 
trative law. His works on these branches 
have become standard, and he is recog- 
nized as authority on this and related sub- 
jects. Upon the passage of the inter-state 
commerce law in 1887 he became chairman 
of the commission and served in that capac- 
ity four years. 



JOHN PETER ALTGELD, a noted 
American politician and writer on social 
questions, was born in Germany, December 
30, 1847. He came to America with his 
parents and settled in Ohio when two years 
old. In 1 864 he entered the Union army 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRATHT. 



141 



and served till the close of the war, after 
which he settled in Chicago, Illinois. He 
was elected judge of the superior court of 
Cook county, Illinois, in 1886, in which 
capacity he served until elected governor of 
Illinois in 1S92, as a Democrat. During 
the first year of his term as governor he at- 
tracted national attention by his pardon of 
the anarchists convicted of the Haymarket 
murder in Chicago, and again in 1894 by 
his denunciation of President Cleveland for 
calling out federal troops to suppress the 
rioting in connection with the great Pull- 
man strike in Chicago. At the national 
convention of the Democratic party in Chi- 
cago, in July, 1896, he is said to have in- 
spired the clause in the platform denuncia- 
tory of interference by federal authorities in 
local affairs, and "government by injunc- 
tion." He was gubernatorial candidate for 
re-election on the Democratic ticket in 1 896, 
but was defeated by John R. Tanner, Re- 
publican. Mr. Altgeld published two vol- 
umes of essays on " Live Questions," evinc- 
ing radical views on social matters. 



ADLAI EWING STEVENSON, an Amer. 
ican statesman and politician, was born 
in Christian county, Kentucky, October 23, 
1835, and removed with the family to 
Bloomington, Illinois, in 1852. He was 
admitted to the bar in 1858, and set- 
tled in the practice of his profession 
in Metamora, Illinois. In 1861 he was 
made master in chancery of Woodford 
county, and in 1864 was elected state's at- 
torney. In 1868 he returned to Blooming- 
ton and formed a law partnership with 
James S. Ewing. He had served as a pres- 
idential elector in 1864, and in 1868 was 
elected to congress as a Democrat, receiv- 
ing a majority vote from every county in his 
district. He became prominent in his 



party, and was a delegate to the national 
convention in 1884. On the election of 
Cleveland to the presidency Mr. Stevenson 
was appointed first assistant postmaster- 
general. After the expiration of his term 
he continued to exert a controlling influence 
in the politics of his state, and in 1892 was 
elected vice-president of the United States 
on the ticket with Grover Cleveland. At 
the expiration of his term of office he re- 
sumed the practice of law at Bloomington, 
Illinois. 

SIMON CAMERON, whose name is 
prominently identified with the history 
of the United States as a political leader 
and statesman, was born in Lancaster coun- 
ty, Pennsylvania, March 8, 1799. He grew 
to manhood in his native county, receiving 
good educational advantages, and develop- 
ing a natural inclination for political life. 
He rapidly rose in prominence and became 
the most influential Democrat in Pennsyl- 
vania, and in 1845 was elected by that party 
to the United States senate. Upon the 
organization of the Republican party he was 
one of the first to declare his allegiance to 
it, and in 1856 was re-elected United States 
senator from Pennsylvania as a Republican. 
In March, 1861, he was appointed secretary 
of war by President Lincoln, and served 
until early in 1862, when he was sent as 
minister' to Russia, returning in 1863. In 
1866 he was again elected United States 
senator and served until 1877, when he re- 
signed and was succeeded by his son, James 
Donald Cameron. He continued to exert a 
powerful influence in political affairs up to 
the time of his death, June 26, 1889. 

James Donald Cameron was the eld- 
est son of Simon Cameron, and also 
attained a high rank among American 
statesmen. He was born at Harrisburg, 



142 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



Pennsylvania, May 14, 1833, and received an 
excellent education, graduating at Princeton 
College in 1852. He rapidly developed into 
one of the most able and successful business 
men of the country and was largely inter- 
ested in and identified with the develop- 
ment of the coal, iron, lumber and manu- 
facturing interests of his native state. He 
served as cashier and afterward president of 
the Middletown bank, and in 1861 was made 
vice-president, and in 1863 president of 
the Northern Central railroad, holding this 
position until 1874, when he resigned and 
was succeeded by Thomas A. Scott. This 
road was of great service to the government 
during the war as a means of communica- 
tion between Pennsylvania and the national 
capital, via Baltimore. Mr. Cameron also 
took an active part in political affairs, 
always as a Republican. In May, 1876, 
he was appointed secretary of war in Pres- 
ident Grant's cabinet, and in 1877 suc- 
ceeded his father in the United States 
senate. He was re-elected in 1885, and 
again in 1 891 , serving until 1896, and was 
recognized as one of the most prominent and 
influential members of that bodv. 



ADOLPHUS W. GREELEY, a famous 
American arctic explorer, was born at 
Newburyport, Massachusetts, March 27, 
:<844. He graduated from Brown High 
School at the age of sixteen, and a year 
later enlisted in Company B, Nineteenth 
Massachusetts Infantry, and was made first 
sergeant. In 1863 he was promoted to 
second lieutenant. After the war he was 
assigned to the Fifth United States Cavalry, 
and became first lieutenant in 1873. He 
was assigned to duty in the United States 
signal service shortly after the clcse of the 
war. An expedition was fitted out by the 
United States government in 1881, un- 



der auspices of the weather bureau, and 
Lieutenant Greeley placed in command. 
They set sail from St. Johns the first week 
in July, and after nine days landed in Green- 
land, where they secured the services of two 
natives, together with sledges, dogs, furs 
and equipment. They encountered an ice 
pack early in August, and on the 28th of 
that month freezing weather set in. Two 
of his party, Lieutenant Lockwood and Ser- 
geant Brainard, added to the known maps 
about forty miles of coast survey, and 
reached the highest point yet attained by 
man, eighty-three degrees and twenty-four 
minutes north, longitude, forty-four degrees 
and five minutes west. On their return to 
Fort Conger, Lieutenant Greeley set out 
for the south on August 9, 1883. He 
reached Baird Inlet twenty days later with 
his entire party. Here they were compelled 
to abandon their boats, and drifted on an 
ice-floe for one month. They then went 
into camp at Cape Sabine, where they suf- 
fered untold hardships, and eighteen of the 
party succumbed to cold and hunger, and 
had relief been delayed two days longer 
none would have been found alive. They 
were picked up by the relief expedition, 
under Captain Schley, June 22, 1884. The 
dead were taken to New York for burial. 
Many sensational stories were published 
concerning the expedition, and Lieutenant 
Greeley prepared an exhaustive account 
of his explorations and experiences. 



LEVI P. MORTON, the millionaire poli- 
tician, was born in Shoreham, Ver- 
mont, May 16, 1824, and his early educa- 
tion consisted of the rudiments which he 
obtained in the common school up to t.he 
of fourteen, and after that time what 
knowledge he gained was wrested from the 
hard school of experience. He removed to 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



143 



Hanover, Vermont, then Concord, Vermont, 
and afterwards to Boston. He had worked 
in a store at Shoreham, his native village, 
and on going to Hanover he established a 
store and went into business for himself. 
In Boston he clerked in a dry goods store, 
and then opened a business of his own in 
the same line in New York. After a short 
career he failed, and was compelled to set- 
tle with his creditors at only fifty cents on 
the dollar. He began the struggle anew, 
and when the war began he established a 
banking house in New York, with Junius 
Morgan as a partner. Through his firm 
and connections the great government war 
loans were floated, and it resulted in im- 
mense profits to his house. When he was 
again thoroughly established he invited his 
former creditors to a banquet, and under 
each guest's plate was found a check cover- 
ing the amount of loss sustained respec- 
tively, with interest to date. 

President Garfield appointed Mr. Mor- 
ton as minister to France, after he had de- 
clined the secretaryship of the navy, and in 
1888 he was nominated as candidate for 
vice-president, with Harrison, and elected. 
In 1894 he was elected governor of New 
York over David B. Hill, and served one 
term. 



CHARLES KENDALL ADAMS, one 
of the most talented and prominent 
educators this country has known, was born 
January 24, 1835, at Derby, Vermont. He 
received an elementary education in the 
common schools, and studied two terms in 
the Derby Academy. Mr. Adams moved 
with his parents to Iowa in 1856. He was 
very anxious to pursue a collegiate course, 
but this was impossible until he had attained 
the age of twenty-one. In the autumn of 
1856 he began the study of Latin and Greek 



at Denmark Academy, and in September, 
1857, he was admitted to the University of 
Michigan. Mr. Adams was wholly depend- 
ent upon himself for the means of his edu- 
cation. During his third and fourth year 
he became deeply interested in historical 
studies, was assistant librarian of the uni- 
versity, and determined to pursue a post- 
graduate course. In 1864 he was appointed 
instructor of history and Latin and was ad- 
vanced to an assistant professorship in 1865, 
and in 1867, on the resignation o\ Professoi 
White to accept the presidency of Cornell,, 
he was appointed to fill the chair of profes- 
sor of history. This he accepted on con- 
dition of his being allowed to spend a year 
for special study in Germany, France and 
Italy. Mr. Adams returned in 1868, and 
assumed the duties of his professorship. 
He introduced the German system for the 
instruction of advanced history classes, and 
his lectures were largely attended. In 1885, 
on the resignation of President White at 
Cornell, he was elected his successor and 
held the office for seven years, and on Jan- 
uary 17, 1893, he was inaugurated presi- 
dent of the University of Wisconsin. Pres- 
ident Adams was prominently connected 
with numerous scientific and literary organ- 
izations and a frequent contributor to the 
historical and educational data in the peri- 
odicals and journals of the country. He 
was the author of the following: " Dem- 
ocracy and Monarchy in France," " Manual 
of Historical Literature," " A Plea for Sci- 
entific Agriculture," " Higher Education in 
Germany." 

JOSEPH B. FORAKER, a prominent po- 
litical leader and ex-governor of Ohio, 
was born near Rainsboro, Highland county, 
Ohio, July 5, 1846. His parents operated 
a small farm, with a grist and sawmill, hav- 



144 



COMPEXDIl'M OF BIOGRAPI/r. 



ing emigrated hither from Virginia and 
Delaware on account of their distaste for 
slavery. 

Joseph was reared upon a farm until 
1862, when he enlisted in the Eighty-ninth 
Ohio Infantry. Later he was made ser- 
geant, and in 1864 commissioned first lieu- 
tenant. The next year he was brevetted 
captain. At the age of nineteen he was 
mustered out of the army after a brilliant 
service, part of the time being on the staff 
of General Slocum. He participated in the 
battles of Missionary Ridge, Lookout Mount- 
ain and Kenesaw Mountain and in Sher- 
man's march to the sea. 

For two years subsequent to the war 
young Foraker was studying at the Ohio 
Wesleyan University at Delaware, but later 
went to Cornell University, at Unity, New 
York, from which he graduated July 1, 
1869. He studied law and w^as admitted to 
the bar. In 1879 Mr. Foraker was elected 
judge of the superior court of Cincinnati 
and held the office for three years. In 1883 
he was defeated in the contest for the gov- 
ernorship with Judge Hoadly. In 1885, 
however, being again nominated for the 
same office, he was elected and served two 
terms. In 1889, in running for governor 
again, this time against James E. Camp- 
bell, he was defeated. Two years later his 
career in the United States senate began. 
Mr. Foraker was always a prominent figure 
at all national meetings of the Republican 
party, and a strong power, politically, in his 
native state. 



preacher and author. Lyman Abbott was 
born December 18, 1835, in Roxbury, 
Massachusetts. He graduated at the New 
York University, in 1853, studied law, and 
practiced for a time at the bar, after which 
he studied theology with his uncle, Rev. 
John S. C. Abbott, and in i860 was settled 
in the ministry at Terre Haute, Indiana, re- 
maining there until after the close of the 
war. He then became connected with the 
Freedmen's Commission, continuing this 
until 1868, when he accepted the pastorate 
of the New England Congregational church, 
in New York City. A few years later he re- 
signed, to devote his time principally to lit- 
erary pursuits. For a number of years he 
edited for the American Tract Society, its 
••Illustrated Christian Weekly," also the 
New York "Christian Union." He pro- 
duced many works, which had a wide circu- 
lation, among which may be mentioned the 
following: "Jesus of Nazareth, His Life and 
Teachings," "Old Testament Shadows of 
New Testament Truths," "Morning and 
Evening Exercises, Selected from Writings 
of Henry Ward Beecher," " Laicus, or the 
Experiences of a Layman in a Country 
Parish," "Popular Religious Dictionary," 
and "Commentaries on Matthew, Mark, 
Luke, John and Acts." 



LYMAN ABBOTT, an eminent American 
preacher and writer on religious sub- 
jects, came of a noted New England 
family. His father, Rev. Jacob Abbott, was 
a prolific and popular writer, and his uncle, 
Rev. John S. C. Abbott, was a noted 



GEORGE WILLIAM CURTIS.— The 
well-known author, orator and journal- 
ist whose name heads this sketch, was born 
at Providence, Rhode Island, February 24, 
1824. Having laid the foundation of a 
most excellent education in his native land, 
he went to Europe and studied at the Uni- 
versity of Berlin. He made an extensive 
tour throughout the Levant, from which he 
returned home in 1850. At that early age 
literature became his field of labor, and in 
1 85 1 he published his first important work, 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



145 



" Nile Notes of a Howadji. " In 1852 two 
works issued from his facile pen, "The 
Howadji in Syria," and " Lotus-Eating. " 
Later on he was the author of the well- 
known " Potiphar Papers," " Prue and I," 
and "Trumps." He greatly distinguished 
himself throughout this land as a lecturer 
on many subjects, and as an orator had but 
few peers. He was also well known as one 
of the most fluent speakers on the stump, 
making many political speeches in favor of 
the Republican party. In recognition of 
his valuable services, Mr. Curtis was ap- 
pointed by President Grant, chairman of 
the advisory board of the civil service. Al- 
though a life-long Republican, Mr. Curtis 
refused to support Blaine for the presidency 
in 1884, because of his ideas on civil ser- 
vice and other reforms. For his memorable 
and magnificent eulogy on Wendell Phillips, 
delivered in Boston, in 1884, that city pre- 
sented Mr. Curtis with a gold medal. 

George W. Curtis, however, is best 
known to the reading public of the United 
States by his connection with the Harper 
Brothers, having been editor of the " Har- 
per's Weekly, " and of the "Easy Chair," 
in " Harper's Monthly Magazine, "for many 
years, in fact retaining that position until 
the day of his death, which occurred August 
3i. 1892. 

ANDREW JOHNSON, the seventeenth 
president of the United States, served 
from 1865 to 1869. He was born Decem- 
ber 8, 1808, at Raleigh, North Carolina, 
and was left an orphan at the age of four 
years. He never attended school, and was 
apprenticed to a tailor. While serving his 
apprenticeship he suddenly acquired a pas- 
sion for knowledge, and learned to read. 
From that time on he spent all his spare 
time in reading, and after working for two 



years as a journeyman tailor at Lauren's 
Court House, South Carolina, he removed 
to Greenville, Tennessee, where he worked 
at his trade and was married. Under his 
wife's instruction he made rapid progress in 
his studies and manifested such an interest 
in local politics as to be elected as " work- 
ingmen's candidate " alderman in 1828, and 
in 1830 to the mayoralty, and was twice 
re-elected to each office. Mr. Johnson 
utilized this time in cultivating his talents 
as a public speaker, by taking part in a de- 
bating society. He was elected in 1835 to 
the lower house of the legislature, was re- 
elected in 1839 as a Democrat, and in 
1841 was elected state senator. Mr. John- 
son was elected representative in congress 
in 1843 and was re-elected four times in 
succession until 1853, when he was the suc- 
cessful candidate for the gubernatorial chair 
of Tennessee. He was re-elected in 1855 
and in 1857 he entered the United States 
senate. In i860 he was supported by the 
Tennessee delegation to the Democratic 
convention for the presidential nomination, 
and lent his .influence to the Breckinridge 
wing of the party. At the election of Lin- 
coln, which brought about the first attempt 
at secession in December, i860, Mr. John- 
son took a firm attitude in the senate for 
the Union. He was the leader of the loy- 
alists in East Tennessee. By the course 
that Mr. Johnson pursued in this crisis he 
was brought prominently before the north- 
ern people, and when, in March, 1S62, he 
was appointed military governor of Ten- 
nessee with the rank of brigadier-general, 
he increased his popularity by the vigorous 
manner in which he labored to restore 
order. In the campaign of 1864 he was 
elected vice-president on the ticket with 
President Lincoln, and upon the assassi- 
nation of the latter he succeeded to the 



146 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



presidency, April 15, 1865. He retained 
the cabinet of President Lincoln, and at 
first exhibited considerable severity towards 
the former Confederates, but he soon inau- 
gurated a policy of reconstruction, pro- 
claimed a general amnesty to the late Con- 
federates, and established provisional gov- 
ernments in the southern states. These 
states claimed representation in congress in 
the following December, and then arose the 
momentous question as to what should be 
the policy of the victorious Union against 
their late enemies. The Republican ma- 
jority in congress had an apprehension that 
the President would undo the results of the 
war, and consequently passed two bills over 
the executive veto, and the two highest 
branches of the government were in open 
antagonism. The cabinet was reconstructed 
in July, and Messrs. Randall, Stanbury and 
Browning superseded Messrs. Denison, 
Speed and Harlan. In August, 1867, Pres- 
ident Johnson removed the secretary of war 
and replaced him with General Grant, but 
when congress met in December it refused 
to ratify the removal of Stanton, who re- 
sumed the functions of his office. In 1868 
the president again attempted to remove 
Stanton, who refused to vacate his post 
and was sustained by the senate. Presi- 
dent Johnson was accused by congress of 
high crimes and misdemeanors, but the trial 
resulted in his acquittal. Later he was Uni- 
ted States senator from Tennessee, and 
died July 31, 1875. 



EDMUND RANDOLPH, first attorney- 
general of the United States, was born 
in Virginia, August IO, 1753. His father, 
John Randolph, was attorney-general of 
Virginia, and lived and died a royalist. Ed- 
mund was educated in the law, but joined 
the army as aide-de-camp to Washington 



in 1775, at Cambridge, Massachusetts. He 
was elected to the Virginia convention in 
1776, and attorney -general of the state the 
same year. In 1779 he was elected to the 
Continental congress, and served four years 
in that body. He was a member of the con- 
vention in 1787 that framed the constitu- 
tion. In that convention he proposed what 
was known as the " Virginia plan" of con- 
federation, but it was rejected. He advo- 
cated the ratification of the constitution in 
the Virginia convention, although he had re- 
fused to sign it. He became governor of 
Virginia in 1788, and the next year Wash- 
ington appointed him to the office of at- 
torney-general of the United States upon 
the organization of the government under 
the constitution. He was appointed secre- 
tary of state to succeed Jefferson during 
Washington's second term, but resigned a 
year later on account of differences in the 
cabinet concerning the policy pursued to- 
ward the new French republic. He died 
September 12, 181 3. 



W INFIELD SCOTT HANCOCK was 
born in Montgomery county, Penn- 
sylvania, February 14, 1824. He received 
his early education at the Norristown 
Academy, in his native county, and, in 1840, 
was appointed a cadet in the United States 
Military Academy, at West Point. He was 
graduated from the latter in 1844, and brev- 
etted as second lieutenant of infantry. In 
1853 he was made first lieutenant, and two 
years later transferred to the quartermaster's 
department, with the rank of captain, and 
in 1863 promoted to the rank of major. He 
served on the frontier, and in the war with 
Mexico, displaying conspicuous gallantry dur- 
ing the latter. He also took a part in the 
Seminole war, and in the troubles in Kan- 
sas, in 1857, and in California, at the out- 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHT. 



147 



break of the Civil war, as chief quarter- 
master of the Southern district, he exerted 
a powerful influence. In 1 86 1 he applied 
for active duty in the field, and was assigned 
to the department of Kentucky as chief 
quartermaster, but before entering upon that 
duty, was appointed brigadier-general of 
volunteers. His subsequent history during 
the war was substantially that of the Army 
of the Potomac. He participated in the 
campaign, under McClellan, and led the 
gallant charge, which captured Fort Magru- 
der, won the day at the battle of Wil- 
liamsburg, and by services rendered at 
Savage's Station and other engagements, 
won several grades in the regular service, 
and was recommended by McClellan for 
major-general of volunteers. He was a con- 
spicuous figure at South Mountain and An- 
tietam. He was commissioned major-gen- 
eral of volunteers, November 29, 1862, and 
made commander of the First Division of 
the Second Corps, which he led at Fred- 
ricksburg and at Chancellorsville. He was 
appointed to the command of the Second 
Corps in June, 1863, and at the battle of 
Gettysburg, July 1, 2 and 3, of that year, 
took an important part. On his arrival on 
the field he found part of the forces then 
in retreat, but stayed the retrograde 
movement, checked the enemy, and on the 
following day commanded the left center, 
repulsed, on the third, the grand assault of 
General Lee's army, and was severely 
wounded. For his services on that field 
General Hancock received the thanks of 
congress. On recovering from his wound, 
he was detailed to go north to stimulate re- 
cruiting and fill up the diminished corps, and 
was the recipient of many public receptions 
and ovations. In March, 1864, he returned 
to his command, and in the Wilderness and 
at Spottsylvania led large bodies of men 



successfully and conspicuously. From that 
on to the close of the campaign he was a 
prominent figure. In November, 1864, he 
was detailed to organize the First Veteran 
Reserve Corps, and at the close of hostilities 
was appointed to the command of the Mid- 
dle Military Division. In July, 1866, he 
was made major-general of the regular 
service. He was at the head of various 
military departments until 1872, when he 
was assigned to the command of the Depart- 
ment of the Atlantic, which post he held 
until his death. In 1869 he declined the 
nomination for governor of Pennsylvania. 
He was the nominee of the Democratic 
party for president, in 1880, and was de- 
feated by General Garfield, who had a popu- 
lar majority of seven thousand and eighteen 
and an electoral majority .of fifty-nine. Gen- 
eral Hancock died February 9, 1886. 



THOMAS PAINE, the most noted polit- 
ical and deistical writer of the Revolu- 
tionary period, was born in England, Jan- 
uary 29, 1737, of Quaker parents. His edu- 
cation was-obtained in the grammar schools 
of Thetford, his native town, and supple- 
mented by hard private study while working 
at his trade of stay-maker at London and 
other cities of England. He was for a time 
a dissenting preacher, although he did not 
relinquish his employment. He married a 
revenue official's daughter, and was employed 
in the revenue service for some time. He 
then became a grocer and during all this time 
he was reading and cultivating his literary 
tastes, and had developed a clear and forci- 
ble style of composition. He was chosen to 
represent the interests of the excisemen, 
and published a pamphlet that brought 
him considerable notice. He was soon after- 
ward introduced to Benjamin Franklin, and 
having been dismissed from the service on a 



148 



COMPEXDILM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



charge of smuggling, his resentment led him 
to accept the advice of that statesman to 
come to America, in 1774. He became 
editor of the ' ' Pennsylvania Magazine," and 
the next year published his "Serious 
Thoughts upon Slavery" in the "Penn- 
sylvania Journal." His greatest political 
work, however, was written at the sugges- 
tion of Dr. Rush, and entitled "Common 
Sense." It was the most popular pamphlet 
written during the period and he received 
two thousand five hundred dollars from the 
state of Pennsylvania in recognition of its 
value. His periodical, the "Crisis," began 
in 1776, and its distribution among the 
soldiers did a great deal to keep up the spirit 
of revolution. He was made secretary of 
the committee of foreign affairs, but was dis- 
missed for revealing diplomatic secrets in 
one of his controversies with Silas Deane. 
He was originator land promoter of a sub- 
scription to relieve the distress of the soldiers 
near the close of the war, and was sent to 
France with Henry Laurens to negotiate the 
treaty with France, and was granted three 
thousand dollars by congress for his services 
there, and an estate at New Rochelle, by the 
state of New York. 

In 1787, after the close of the Revolu- 
tionary war, he went to France, and a few 
years later published his " Rights of Man," 
defending the French revolution, which 
gave him great popularity in p rance. He 
was made a citizen and elected to the na- 
tional convention at Calais. He favored 
banishment of the king to America, and 
opposed his execution. He was imprisoned 
for about ten months during 1794 by the 
Robespierre party, during which time he 
wrote the " Age of Reason," his great deis- 
tical work. He was in danger of the guillo- 
tine for several months. He took up his 
residence with the family of James Monroe, 



then minister to France and was chosen 
again to the convention. He returned 
to the United States in 1802, and was 
cordially received throughout the coun- 
try except at Trenton, where he was insulted 
by Federalists. He retired to his estate at 
New Rochelle, and his death occurred June 
8, 1809. 

JOHN WILLIAM MACKAY was one of 
America's noted men, both in the de- 
velopment of the western coast and the 
building of the Mackay and Bennett cable. 
He was born in 1831 at Dublin, Ireland; 
came to New York in 1840 and his boyhood 
days were spent in Park Row. He went 
to California some time after the argonauts 
of 1849 and took to the primitive methods 
of mining — lost and won and finally drifted 
into Nevada about i860. The bonanza dis- 
coveries which were to have such a potent 
influence on the finance and statesmanship 
of the day came in 1S72. Mr. Mackay 
founded the Nevada Bank in 1S78. He is 
said to have taken one hundred and 
fifty million dollars in bullion out of 
the Big Bonanza mine. There were as- 
sociated with him in this enterprise James 
G. Fair, senator from Nevada; William 
O'Brien and James C. Flood. When 
vast wealth came to Mr. Mackay he be- 
lieved it his duty to do his country some 
service, and he agitated in his mind the 
building of an American steamship line, 
and while brooding over this his attention 
was called to the cable relations between 
America and Europe'. The financial man- 
agement of the cable was selfish and ex- 
travagant, and the capital was heavy with 
accretions of financial " water" and to pay 
even an apparent dividend upon the sums 
which represented the nominal value of the 
cables, it was necessary to hold the rates 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



149 



at an exorbitant figure. And, moreover, 
the cables were foreign; in one the influence 
of France being paramount and in the other 
that of England; and in the matter of intel- 
ligence, so necessary in case of war, we 
would be at the mercy of our enemies. This 
train of thought brought Mr. Mackay into re- 
lation with James Gordon Bennett, the pro- 
prietor of the " New York Herald." The 
result of their intercourse was that Mr. Mac- 
kay so far entered into the enthusiasm of 
Mr. Bennett over an independent cable, 
that he offered to assist the enterprise with 
five hundred thousand dollars. This was the 
inception of the Commercial Cable Com- 
pany, or of what has been known for years 
as the Mackav-Bennett cable. 



ELISHA GRAY, the great inventor and 
electrician, was born August 2, 1835. 
at Barnesville, Belmont county, Ohio. He 
was, as a child, greatly interested in the 
phenomena of nature, and read with avidity 
all the books he could obtain, relating to 
this subject. He was apprenticed to various 
trades during his boyhood, but his insatiable 
thirst for knowledge dominated his life and 
he found time to study at odd intervals. 
Supporting himself by working at his trade, 
he found time to pursue a course at Oberlin 
College, where he particularly devoted him- 
self to the study of physicial science. Mr. 
Gray secured his first patent for electrical 
or telegraph apparatus on October I, 1867. 
His attention was first attracted to tele- 
phonic transmission during this year and he 
saw in it a way of transmitting signals for 
telegraph purposes, and conceived the idea 
of electro-tones, tuned to different tones in 
the scale. He did not then realize the im- 
portance of his invention, his thoughts being 
employed on the capacity of the apparatus 
for transmitting musical tones through an 



electric circuit, and it was not until 1874 
that he was again called to consider the re- 
production of electrically-transmitted vibra- 
tions through the medium of animal tissue. 
He continued experimenting with various 
results, which finally culminated in his 
taking out a patent for his speaking tele- 
phone on February 14, 1876. He took out 
fifty additional patents in the course of 
eleven years, among which were, telegraph 
switch, telegraph repeater, telegraph annun- 
ciator and typewriting telegraph. From 
1869 until 1873 he was employed in the 
manufacture of telegraph apparatus in Cleve- 
land and Chicago, and filled the office of 
electrician to the Western Electric Com- 
pany. He was awarded the degree of D. 
S. , and in 1874 he went abroad to perfect 
himself in acoustics. Mr. Gray's latest in- 
vention was known as the telautograph or 
long distance writing machine. Mr. Gray 
wrote and published several works on scien- 
tific subjects, among which were: "Tele- 
graphy and Telephony," and "Experi- 
mental Research in Electro-Harmonic Tele- 
graphy and Telephony." 



A \ miTELAW REID.— Among the many 
V V men who have adorned the field of 
journalism in the United States, few stand 
out with more prominence than the scholar, 
author and editor whose name heads this ar- 
ticle. Born at Xenia, Greene county, Ohio, 
October 27, 1837, he graduated at Miami 
University in 1856. For about a year he 
was superintendent of the graded schools of 
South Charleston, Ohio, after which he pur- 
chased the "Xenia News," which he edited 
for about two years. This paper was the 
first one outside of Illinois to advocate the 
nomination of Abraham Lincoln, Mr. Reid 
having been a Republican since the birth of 
that party in 1856. After taking an active 



150 



COMI'EXDIIW OF BIOGRAPHY 



part in the campaign, in the winter of 1860- 
61 , he went to the state capital as corres- 
pondent of three daily papers. At the close 
of the session of the legislature he became 
city editor of the "Cincinnati Gazette," 
and at the breaking out of the war went to 
the front as a correspondent for that journal. 
For a time he served on the staff of General 
Morris in West Virginia, with the rank of 
captain. Shortly after he was on the staff 
of General Rosecrans, and, under the name 
of "Agate," wrote most graphic descrip- 
tions of the movements in the field, espe- 
cially that of the battle ol Pittsburg Land- 
ing. In the spring of 1S62 Mr. Reid went 
to Washington and was appointed librarian 
to the house of representatives, and acted as 
correspondent of the " Cincinnati Gazette." 
His description of the battle of Gettysburg, 
written on the field, gained him added 
reputation. In 1S65 he accompanied Chief 
Justice Chase on a southern tour, and pub- 
lished "After the War; a Southern Tour." 
During the next two years he was engaged 
in cotton planting in Louisiana and Ala- 
bama, and published "Ohio in the War." 
In 1868 he returned to the " Cincinnati Ga- 
zette," becoming one of its leading editors. 
The same year he accepted the invitation of 
Horace Greeley and became one of the staff 
on the " New York Tribune." Upon the 
death of Mr. Greeley in 1872, Mr. Reid be- 
came editor and chief proprietor of that 
paper. In 1878 he was tendered the United 
States mission to Berlin, but declined. The 
offer was again made by the Garfield ad- 
ministration, but again he declined. In 
1878 he was elected by the New York legis- 
lature regent of the university, to succeed 
General John A. Dix. Under the Harrison 
administration he served as United States 
minister to France, and in 1892 was the 
Republican nominee for the vice-presidency 



of the United States. Among other works 
published by him were the " Schools of 
Journalism," "The Scholar in Politics," 
''Some Newspaper Tendencies," and 
"Town-Hall Suggestions." 



GEORGE WHITEFIELD was one of 
the most powerful and effective preach- 
ers the world has ever produced, swaying 
his hearers and touching the hearts of im- 
mense audiences in a manner that has rarely 
been equalled and never surpassed. While 
not a native of America, yet much of his 
labor was spent in this country. He wielded 
a great influence in the United States in 
early days, and his death occurred here; so 
that he well deserves a place in this volume 
as one of the most celebrated men America 
has known. 

George Whitefield was born in the Bull 
Inn, at Gloucester, England, December i6~, 
1714. He acquired the rudiments of learn- 
ing in St. Mary's grammar school. Later 
he attended Oxford University for a time, 
where he became intimate with the Oxford 
Methodists, and resolved to devote himself 
to the ministry. He was ordained in the 
Gloucester Cathedral June 20, 1836, and 
the following day preached his first sermon 
in the same church. On that day there 
commenced a new era in Whitefield's life. 
He went to London and began to preach at 
Bishopsgate church, his fame soon spread- 
ing over the city, and shortly he was en- 
gaged four times on a single Sunday in ad- 
dressing audiences of enormous magnitude, 
and he preached in various parts of his native 
country, the people crowding in multitudes 
to hear him and hanging upon the rails and 
rafters of the churches and approaches there- 
to. He finally sailed for America, landing 
in Georgia, where he stirred the people to 
great enthusiasm. During the balance of 



1 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



153 



his life he divided his time between Great 
Britain and America, and it is recorded that 
he crossed the Atlantic thirteen times. He 
came to America for the seventh time in 
1770. He preached every day at Boston 
from the 17th to the 20th of September, 
1770, then traveled to Newburyport, preach- 
ing at Exeter, New Hampshire, September 
29, on the way. That evening he went to 
.Newburyport, where he died the next day, 
Sunday, September 30, 1770. 

" Whitefield's dramatic power was amaz- 
ing, " says an eminent writer in describing 
him. " His voice was marvelously varied, 
and he ever had it at command — an organ, 
a flute, a harp, all in one. His intellectual 
powers were not of a high order, but he had 
an abundance of that ready talent and that 
wonderful magnetism which makes the pop- 
ular preacher; and beyond all natural en- 
dowments, there was in his ministry the 
power of evangelical truth, and, as his con- 
verts believed, the presence of the spirit of 
God." 

CHARLES FRANCIS BRUSH, one of 
America's prominent men in the devel- 
opment of electrical science, was born March 
17, 1849, near Cleveland, Ohio, and spent 
his early life on his father's farm. From 
the district school at Wickliffe, Ohio, he 
passed to the Shaw Academy at Collamer, 
and then entered the high school at Cleve- 
land. His interest in chemistry, physics 
and engineering was already marked, and 
during his senior year he was placed in 
charge of the chemical and physical appar- 
atus. During these years he devised a plan 
for lighting street lamps, constructed tele- 
scopes, and his first electric arc lamp, also 
an electric motor. In September, 1867, he 
entered the engineering department of the 

University of Michigan and graduated in 
9 



1869, which was a year in advance of his 
class, with the degree of M. E. He then 
returned to Cleveland, and for three years 
was engaged as an analytical chemist and 
for four years in the iron business. In 
1875 Mr. Brush became interested in elec- 
tric lighting, and in 1876, after four months' 
experimenting, he completed the dynamo- 
electric machine that has made his name 
famous, and in a shorter time produced the 
series arc lamps. These were both patent- 
ed in the United States in 1876, and he 
afterward obtained fifty patents on his later 
inventions, including the fundamental stor- 
age battery, the compound series, shunt- 
winding for dynamo-electric machines, and 
the automatic cut-out for arc lamps. His 
patents, two-thirds of which have already 
been profitable, are held by the Brush 
Electric Company, of Cleveland, while his 
foreign patents are controlled by the Anglo- 
American Brush Electric Light Company, 
of London. In 1880 the Western Reserve 
University conferred upon Mr. Brush the 
degree of Ph. D., and in 1 88 1 the French 
government decorated him as a chevalier of 
the Legion of Honor. 



HENRY CLEWS, of Wall-street fame, 
was one of the noted old-time opera-' 
tors on that famous street, and was also an 
author of some repute. Mr. Clews was 
born in Staffordshire, England, August 14, 
1840. His father had him educated with 
the intention of preparing him for the minis- 
try, but on a visit to the United States the 
young man became interested in a business 
life, and was allowed to engage as a clerk in 
the importing house of Wilson G. Hunt & 
Co., of New York. Here he learned the 
first principles of business, and when the war 
broke out in 1861 young Clews saw in the 
needs of the government an opportunity to 



154 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



reap a golden harvest. He identified him- 
self with the negotiating of loans for the 
government, and used his powers of pur- 
suasion upon the great money powers to 
convince them of the stability of the govern- 
ment and the value of its securities. By 
enthusiasm and patriotic arguments he in- 
duced capitalists to invest their money in 
government securities, often against their 
judgment, and his success was remarkable. 
His was one of the leading firms that aided 
the struggling treasury department in that 
critical hour, and his reward was great. In 
addition to the vast wealth it brought, 
President Lincoln and Secretary Chase 
both wrote important letters, acknowledging 
his valued service. In 1873, by the repu- 
diation of the bonded indebtedness of the 
state of Georgia, Mr. Clews lost six million 
dollars which he had invested in those se- 
curities. It is said that he is the only man, 
with one exception, in Wall street, who 
ever regained great wealth after utter dis- 
aster. His " Twenty-Eight Years in Wall 
Street " has been widely read. 



ALFRED VAIL was one of the men that 
gave to the world the electric telegraph 
and the names of Henry, Morse and Vail 
will forever remain linked as the prime fac- 
tors in that great achievement. Mr. Vail 
was born September 25, 1807, at Morris- 
town, New Jersey, and was a son of Stephen 
Vail, the proprietor of the Speedwell Iron 
Works, near Morristown. At the age of 
seventeen, after he had completed his stud- 
ies at the Morristown Academy, Alfred Vail 
went into the Speedwell Iron Works and 
contented himself with the duties of his 
position until he reached his majority. He 
then determined to prepare himself for the 
ministry, and at the age of twenty-five he 
entered the University of the City of New 



York, where he was graduated in 1836. His 
health becoming impaired he labored for a 
time under much uncertainty as to his future 
course. Professor S. F. B. Morse had come 
to the university in 1835 as professor of lit- 
erature and fine arts, and about this time, 

1837, Professor Gale, occupying the chair 
of chemistry, invited Morse to exhibit his 
apparatus for the benefit of the students. 
On Saturday, September 2, 1837, the exhi- 
bition took place and Vail was asked to at- 
tend, and with his inherited taste for me- 
chanics and knowledge of their construction, 
he saw a great future for the crude mechan- 
ism used by Morse in giving and recording 
signals. Mr. Vail interested his father in 
the invention, and Morse was invited to 
Speedwell and the elder Vail promised to 
help him. It was stipulated that Alfred 
Vail should construct the required apparatus 
and exhibit before a committee of congress 
the telegraph instrument, and was to receive 
a quarter interest in the invention. Morse 
had devised a series of ten numbered leaden 
types, which were to be operated in giving 
the signal. This was not satisfactory to 
Vail, so he devised an entirely new instru- 
ment, involving a lever, or "point," on a 
radically different principle, which, when 
tested, produced dots and dashes, and de- 
vised the famous dot-and-dash alphabet, 
misnamed the "Morse." At last the ma- 
chine was in working order, on January 6, 

1838. The machine was taken to Wash- 
ington, where it caused not only wonder, 
but excitement. Vail continued his experi- 
ments and devised the lever and roller. 
When the line between Baltimore and 
Washington was completed, Vail was sta- 
tioned at the Baltimore end and received 
the famous first message. It is a remarka- 
ble fact that not a single feature of the 
original invention of Morse, as formulated 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHT. 



155 



by his caveat and repeated in his original 
patent, is to be found in Vail's apparatus. 
From 1837 to 1844 it was a combination of 
the inventions of Morse, Henry and Vail, 
but the work of Morse fell gradually into 
desuetude, while Vail's conception of an 
alphabet has remained unchanged for half a 
century. Mr. Vail published but one work, 
"American Electro-Magnetic Telegraph," 
in 1845, and died at Morristown at the com- 
paratively early age of fifty-one, on January 
19, 1859. 

ULYSSES S. GRANT, the eighteenth 
president of the United States, was 
born April 27, 1822, at Point Pleasant, Cler- 
mont county, Ohio. At the age of seven- 
teen he entered the United States Military 
Academy at West Point, from which he 
graduated in June, 1843, ar >d was given his 
brevet as second lieutenant and assigned to 
the Fourth Infantry. He remained in the 
service eleven years, in which time he 
was engaged in the Mexican war with gal- 
lantry, and was thrice brevetted for conduct 
in the field. In 1848 he married Miss Julia 
Dent, and in 1854, having reached the 
grade of captain, he resigned and engaged 
in farming near St. Louis. In i860 he en- 
tered the leather business with his father at 
Galena, Illinois. 

On the breaking out of the war, in 1861, 
he commenced to drill a company at Ga- 
lena, and at the same time offered his serv- 
ices to the adjutant-general of the army, 
but he had few influential friends, so re- 
ceived no answer. He was employed by 
the governor of Illinois in the organization 
of the various volunteer regiments, and at 
the end of a few weeks was given the 
colonelcy of the Twenty-first Infantry, from 
that state. His military training and knowl- 
edge soon attracted the attention of his su- 



perior officers, and on reporting to General 
Pope in Missouri, the latter put him in 
the way of advancement. August 7, 1861, 
he was promoted to the rank of brigadier- 
general of volunteers, and for a few weeks 
was occupied in watching the movements of 
partisan forces in Missouri. September 1, 
the same year, he was placed in command 
of the Department of Southeast Missouri, 
with headquarters at Cairo, and on the 6th 
of the month, without orders, seized Padu- 
cah, which commanded the channel of the 
Ohio and Tennessee rivers, by which he se- 
cured Kentucky for the Union. He now 
received orders to make a demonstration on 
Belmont, which he did, and with about three 
thousand raw recruits held his own against 
the Confederates some seven thousand 
strong, bringing back about two hundred 
prisoners and two guns. In February,) 1862, 
he moved up the Tennessee river with 
the naval fleet under Commodore Foote. 
The latter soon silenced Fort Henry, and 
Grant advanced against Fort Donelson and 
took their fortress and its garrison. His 
prize here consisted of sixty-five cannon, 
seventeen thousand six hundred stand of 
arms, and fourteen thousand six hundred 
and twenty-three prisoners. This was the 
first important success won by the Union 
forces. Grant was immediately made a 
major-general and placed in command of 
the district of West Tennessee. In April, 
1862, he fought the battle of Pittsburg Land- 
ing, and after the evacuation of Corinth by 
the enemy Grant became commander of the 
Department of the Tennessee. He now 
made his first demonstration toward Vicks- 
burg, but owing to the incapacity of subor- 
dinate officers, was unsuccessful. In Janu- 
ary, 1863, he took command of all the 
troops in the Mississippi Valley and devoted 
several months to the siege of Vicksburg, 



156 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



which was finally taken possession of by him 
July 4, with thirty-one thousand six hundred 
prisoners and one hundred and seventy-two 
cannon, thus throwing the Mississippi river 
open to the Federals. He was now raised 
to the rank of major-general in the regular 
army. October following, at the head of 
the Department of the Mississippi, General 
Grant went to Chattanooga, where he over- 
threw the enemy, and united with the Army 
of the Cumberland. The remarkable suc- 
cesses achieved by him pointed Grant out 
for an appropriate commander of all na- 
tional troops, and in February, 1864, the 
rank of lieutenant-general was made for him 
by act of congress. Sending Sherman into 
Georgia, Sigel into the Valley of West Vir- 
ginia and Butler to attempt the capture of 
Richmond he fought his >vay through the 
Wilderness to the James and pressed the 
siege of the capital of the Confederacy. 
After the fall of the latter Grant pressed 
the Confederate army so hard that their 
commander surrendered at Appomattox 
Court House, April 9, 1865. This virtually 
ended the war. 

After the war the rank of general was 
conferred upon U. S. Grant, and in 1868 he 
was elected president of the United States, 
and re-elected his own successor in 1872. 
After the expiration of the latter term he 
made his famous tour of the world. He died 
at Mt. McGregor, neew Saratoga, New York, 
July 23, 1885, and was buried at Riverside 
Park, New York, where a magnificent tomb 
has been erected to hold the ashes of the 
nation's hero. 



JOHN MARSHALL, the fourth chief jus- 
tice of the United States supreme court, 
was born in Germantown, Virginia, Septem- 
ber 24, 1755 His father, Colonel Thomas 
Marshall, served with distinction in the Rev- 



olutionary war, while he also served from 
the beginning of the war until 1779, where 
he became noted in the field and courts 
martial. While on detached service he at- 
tended a course of law lectures at William 
and Mary College, delivered by Mr. Wythe, 
and was admitted to the bar. The next year 
he resigned his commission and began his 
career as a lawyer. He was a distinguished 
member of the convention called in Virginia 
to ratify the Federal constitution. He was 
tendered the attorney-generalship of the 
United States, and also a place on the su- 
preme bench, besides other places of less 
honor, all of which he declined. He 
went to France as special envoy in 1798, 
and the next year was elected to congress. 
He served one year and was appointed, first, 
secretary of war, and then secretary of state, 
and in 1801 was made chief justice of the 
United States. He held this high office un- 
til his death, in 1835. 

Chief Justice Marshall's early education 
was neglected, and his opinions, the most 
valuable in existence, are noted for depth 
of wisdom, clear and comprehensive reason- 
ing, justice, and permanency, rather than for 
wide learning and scholarly construction. 
His decisions and rulings are resorted to 
constantly by our greatest lawyers, and his 
renown as a just judge and profound jurist 
was world wide. 



LAWRENCE BARRETT is perhaps 
known more widely as a producer of 
new plays than as a great actor. He was 
born in Paterson, New Jersey, in 1838, and 
educated himself as best he could, and at 
the age of sixteen years became salesman 
for a Detroit dry goods house. He after- 
wards began to go upon the stage as a 
supernumerary, and his ambition was soon 
rewarded by the notice of the management. 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHT. 



157 



During the war of the Rebellion he was a 
soldier, and after valiant service for his 
country he returned to the stage. He went 
to Europe and appeared in Liverpool, and 
returning in 1869, he began playing at 
Booth's theater, with Mr. Booth. He was 
afterward associated with John McCullough 
in the management of the California 
theater. Probably the most noted period 
of his work was during his connection with 
Edwin Booth as manager of that great 
actor, and supporting him upon the stage. 
Mr. Barrett was possessed of the crea- 
tive instinct, and, unlike Mr. Booth, he 
sought new fields for the display of his 
genius, and only resorted to traditional 
drama in response to popular demand. He 
preferred new plays, and believed in the 
encouragement of modern dramatic writers, 
and was the only actor of prominence in his 
time that ventured to put upon the stage 
new American plays, which he did at his 
own expense, and the success of his experi- 
ments proved the quality of his judgment. 
He died March 21, 1891. 



ARCHBISHOP JOHN HUGHES, a cel- 
ebrated Catholic clergyman, was born 
at Annaboghan, Tyrone county, Ireland, 
June 24, 1797, and emigrated to America 
when twenty years of age, engaging for 
some time as a gardener and nurseryman. 
In 1 8 19 he entered St. Mary's College, 
where he secured an education, paying his 
way by caring for the college garden. In 
1825 he was ordained a deacon of the Ro- 
man Catholic church, and in the same year, 
a priest. Until 1838 he had pastoral charges 
in Philadelphia, where he founded St. John's 
Asylum in 1829, and a few years later es- 
tablished the "Catholic Herald." In 1838 
he was made bishop of Basileopolis in parti- 
bus and coadjutor to Bishop Dubois, of 



New York, and in 1842 became bishop of 
New York. In 1839 he founded St. John's 
College, at Fordham. In 1850 he was 
made archbishop of New York. In 186 1-2 
he was a special agent of the United States 
in Europe, after which he returned to this 
country and remained until his death, Jan- 
uary 3, 1864. Archbishop Hughes early 
attracted much attention by his controver- 
sial correspondence with Rev. John Breck- 
inridge in 1833-35. He was a man of great 
ability, a fluent and forceful writer and an 
able preacher. 



RUTHERFORD BIRCHARD HAYES 
was the nineteenth president of the 
United States and served from 1 877 to 1 88 1 . 
He was born October 4, 1822, at Delaware, 
Ohio, and his ancestry can be traced back 
as far as 1280, when Hayes and Rutherford 
were two Scottish chieftans fighting side by 
side with Baliol, William Wallace and 
Robert Bruce. The Hayes family had for 
a coat of arms, a shield, barred and sur- 
mounted by a flying eagle. There was a 
circle of stars about the eagle, while on a 
scroll underneath was their motto, "Recte." 
Misfortune overtook the family and in 1680 
George Hayes, the progenitor of the Ameri- 
can family, came to Connecticut and settled 
at Windsor. Rutherford B. Hayes was 
a very delicate child at his birth and was 
not expected to live, but he lived in spite of 
all and remained at home until he was 
seven years old, when he was placed in 
school. He was a very tractablepupil, being 
always very studious, and in 1838 entered 
Kenyon College, graduating from the same 
in 1842. He then took up the study of law 
in the office of Thomas Sparrow at Colum- 
bus, but in a short time he decided to enter 
a law school at Cambridge, Massachusetts, 
where for two years he was immersed in the 



153 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



study of law. Mr. Hayes was admitted to 
the bar in 1845 ul Marietta, Ohio, and very 
soon entered upon the active practice of his 
profession with Ralph P. Buckland, of 
Fremont, Ohio. He remained there three 
years, and in 1849 removed to Cincinnati, 
Ohio, where his ambition found a new 
stimulus. Two events occurred at this 
period that had a powerful influence on his 
afterlife. One was his marriage to Miss 
Lucy Ware Webb, and the other was his 
introduction to a Cincinnati literary club, 
a body embracing such men as Salmon P. 
Chase, John Pope, and Edward F. Noyes. 
In 1856 he was nominated for judge of the 
court of common pleas, but declined, and 
two years later he was appointed city 
solicitor. At the outbreak of the Rebellion 
Mr. Hayes was appointed major of the 
Twenty-third Ohio Infantry, June 7, 1861, 
and in July the regiment was ordered to 
Virginia, and October 15, 1861, saw him 
promoted to the lieutenant-colonelcy of his 
regiment. He was made colonel of the 
Seventy-ninth Ohio Infantry, but refused to 
leave his old comrades; and in the battle of 
South Mountain he was wounded very 
severely and was unable to rejoin his regi- 
ment until November 30, 1862. He had 
been promoted to the colonelcy of the 
regiment on October 15, 1862. In the 
following December he was appointed to 
command the Kanawa division and was 
given the rank of brigadier-general for 
meritorious services in several battles, and 
in 1S64 he was brevetted major-general for 
distinguished services in 1864, during 
which campaign he was wounded several 
times and five horses had been shot under 
him. Mr. Hayes' first venture in politics 
was as a Whig, and later he was one of the 
first to unite with the Republican party. In 
1864 he was elected from the Second Ohio 



district to congress, re-elected in 1866, 
and in 1867 was elected governor of Ohio 
over Allen G. Thurman, and was re-elected 
in 1 869. Mr. Hayes was elected to the 
presidency in 1876, for the term of four 
years, and at its close retired to private life, 
and went to his home in Fremont, Ohio, 
where he died on January 17, 1893. 



WILLIAM JENNINGS BRYAN became 
a celebrated character as the nominee 
of the Democratic and Populist parties for 
president of the United States in 1896. He 
was born March 19, i860, at Salem, Illi- 
nois. He received his early education in 
the public schools of his native county, and 
later on he attended the Whipple Academy 
at Jacksonville. He also took a course in 
Illinois College, and after his graduation 
from the same went to Chicago to study 
law, and entered the Union College of Law 
a c a student. He was associated with the 
late Lyman Trumbull, of Chicago, during 
his law studies, and devoted considerable 
time to the questions of government. He 
graduated from the college, was admitted to 
the bar, and went to Jacksonville, Illinois, 
where he was married to Miss Mary Eliza 
beth Baird. In 1887 Mr. Bryan removed 
to Lincoln, Nebraska, and formed a law 
partnership with Adolphus R. Talbot. He 
entered the field of politics, and in 1888 
was sent as a delegate to the state con- 
vention, which was to choose delegates to 
the national convention, during which he 
made a speech which immediately won him 
a high rank in political affairs. He declined, 
in the next state convention, a nomination 
for lieutenant-governor, and in 189c he was 
elected congressman from the First district 
of Nebraska, and was the youngest member 
of the fifty-second congress. He cham- 
pioned the Wilson tariff bill, and served 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



159 



three terms in the house of representatives. 
He next ran for senator, but was defeated 
by John M. Thurston, and in 1896 he was 
selected by the Democratic and Populist 
parties as their nominee for the presidency, 
being defeated by William McKinley. 



M A ,» 



ARVIN HUGHITT, one of America's 
mous railroad men, was born in 
Genoa, New York, and entered the railway 
service in 1856 as superintendent of tele- 
graph and trainmaster of the St. Louis, Al- 
ton & Chicago, now Chicago & Alton Rail- 
road. Mr. Hughitt was superintendent of 
the southern division of the Illinois Central 
Railroad from 1862 until 1864, and was, later 
on, the general superintendent of the road 
until 1870. He was then connected with 
the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Rail- 
road as assistant general manager, and re- 
tained this position until 1871, when he be- 
came the general manager of Pullman's 
Palace Car Company. In 1872 he was made 
general superintendent of the Chicago & 
Northwestern Railroad. He served during 
1876 and up to 1880 as general manager, 
and from 1880 until 1887 as vice-presi- 
dent and general manager. He was elected 
president of the road in 1887, in recog- 
nition of his ability in conducting the 
affairs of the road. He was also chosen 
©resident of the Chicago, St. Paul, Minne- 
apolis & Omaha Railway; the Fremont, Elk- 
horn & Missouri Valley Railroad, and the 
Milwaukee, Lake Shore & Western Railroad, 
and his services in these capacities stamped 
him as one of the most able railroad mana- 
gers of his day. 



JOSEPH MEDILL, one of the most 
<J eminent of American journalists, was 
born in New Brunswick, Canada, April 6, 
1823. In 1 83 1 his father moved to Stark 



county, Ohio, and until 1841 Joseph Medill 
worked on his father's farm. Later he 
studied law, and began the practice of that 
profession in 1846 at New Philadelphia, 
Ohio. But the newspaper field was more 
attractive to Mr. Medill, and three years 
later he founded a free-soil Whig paper at 
Coshocton, Ohio, and after that time jour- 
nalism received all his abilities. "The 
Leader," another free-soil Whig paper, was 
founded by Mr. Medill at Cleveland in 1852. 
In that city he also became one of the first 
organizers of the Republican party. Shortly 
after that event he removed to Chicago and 
in 1855, with two partners, he purchased 
the " Chicago Tribune." In the contest for 
the nomination for the presidency in i860, 
Mr. Medill worked with unflagging zeal for 
Mr. Lincoln, his warm personal friend, and 
was one of the president's stanchest sup- 
porters during the war. Mr. Medill was a 
member of the Illinois Constitutional con- 
vention in 1870. President Grant, in 1871, 
appointed the editor a member of the firry 
United States civil service commission, and 
the following year, after the fire, he was 
elected mayor of Chicago by a great ma- 
jority. During 1873 and 1874 Mr. Medill 
spent a year in Europe. Upon his return 
he purchased a controlling interest in the 
" Chicago Tribune." 



CLAUSSPRECKELS, the great " sugar 
baron," and one of the most famous 
representatives of commercial life in Amer- 
ica, was born in Hanover, Germany, and 
emigrated to the United States in 1840, 
locating in New York. He very soon be- 
came the proprietor of a small retail gro- 
cery store on Church street, and embarked 
on a career that has since astonished the 
world. He sold out his business and went 
to California with the argonauts of 1849, 



1G0 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



not as a prospector, but as a trader, and for 
years after his arrival on the coast he was 
still engaged as a grocer. At length, after a 
quarter of a century of fairly prosperous 
business life, he found himself in a position 
where an ordinary man would have retired, 
but Mr. Spreckles did not retire; he had 
merely been gathering capital for the real 
work of his life. His brothers had followed 
him to California, and in combination with 
them he purchased for forty thousand dollars 
an interest in the Albany Brewery in San 
Francisco. But the field was not extensive 
enough for the development of his business 
abilities, so Mr. Sprecklas branched out 
extensively in the sugar business. He suc- 
ceeded in securing the entire output of 
sugar that was produced on the Sand- 
wich Islands, and after 1885 was known as 
the "Sugar King of Sandwich Islands." 
He controlled absolutely the sugar trade of 
the Pacific coast which was known to be 
not less than ten million dollars a year. 



CHARLES HENRY PARKHURST, 
famous as a clergyman, and for many 
years president of the Society for the 
Prevention of Crime, was born April 17, 
1842, at Framingham, Massachusetts, of 
English descent. At the age of sixteen 
he was pupil in the grammar school at 
Clinton, Massachusetts, and for the ensu- 
ing two years was a clerk in a dry goods 
store, which position he gave up to prepare 
himself for college at Lancaster academy. 
Mr. Parkhurst went to Amherst in 1862, 
and after taking a thorough course he gradu- 
ated in 1866, and in 1867 became the prin- 
cipal of the Amherst High School. He re- 
tained this position until 1870, when he 
visited Germany with the intention of tak- 
ing a course in philosophy and theology, 
but was forced to abandon this intention on 



account of illness in the family causing his 
early return from Europe. He accepted the 
chair of Latin and Greek in Williston Semi- 
nary, Easthampton, Massachusetts, and re- 
mained there two years. He then accom- 
panied his wife to Europe, and devoted two 
years to study in Halle, Leipsic and Bonn. 
Upon his return home he spent considerable 
time in the study of Sanscrit, and in 1874 
he became the pastor of the First Congrega- 
tional church at Lenox, Massachusetts. He 
gained here his reputation as a pulpit ora- 
tor, and on March 9, 1 880, he became the 
pastor of the Madison Square Presbyterian 
church of New York. He was, in 1890, 
made a member of the Society for the Pre- 
vention of Crime, and the same year be- 
came its president. He delivered a sermon 
in 1892 on municipal corruption, for which 
he was brought before the grand jury, which 
body declared his charges to be without suffi- 
cient foundation. But the matter did not end 
here, for he immediately went to work on a 
second sermon in which he substantiated his 
former sermon and wound up by saying, 
"I know, for I have seen." He was again 
summoned before that august body, and as 
a result of his testimony and of the investi- 
gation of the jurors themselves, the police 
authorities were charged with incompetency 
and corruption. Dr. Parkhurst was the 
author of the following works: "The Forms 
of the Latin Verb, Illustrated by Sanscrit," 
"The Blind Man's Creed and Other Ser- 
mons," "The Pattern on the Mount," and 
" Three Gates on a Side." 



HENRY BERGH, although a writer, 
diplomatist and government official, 
was noted as a philanthropist — the founder 
of the American Society for the Prevention 
of Cruelty to Animals. On his labors for 
the dumb creation alone rests his fame. 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHT. 



161 



Alone, in the face of indifference, opposition 
and ridicule, he began the reform which is 
now recognized as one of the beneficent 
movements of the age. Through his exer- 
tions as a speaker and lecturer, but above 
all as a bold worker, in the street, in the 
court room, before the legislature, the cause 
he adopted gained friends and rapidly in- 
creased in power until it has reached im- 
mense proportions and influence. The work 
of the society covers all cases of cruelty to 
all sorts of animals, employs every moral 
agency, social, legislative and personal, and 
touches points of vital concern to health as 
well as humanity. 

Henry Bergh was born in New York 
City in 1823, and was educated at Colum- 
bia College. In 1863 he was made secre- 
tary of the legation to Russia and also 
served as vice-consul there. He also de- 
voted some time to literary pursuits and was 
the author of "Love's Alternative," a 
drama; "Married Off," a poem; "'The 
Portentous Telegram, " "The Ocean Para- 
gon;" "The Streets of New York," tales 
and sketches. 



HENRY BENJAMIN WHIPPLE, one 
of the most eminent of American di- 
vines, was born in Adams, Jefferson count)', 
New York, February 15, 1822. He was 
brought up in the mercantile business, and 
early in life took an active interest in polit- 
ical affairs. In 1847 ne became a candidate 
for holy orders and pursued theological 
studies with Rev. W. D. Wilson, D. D., 
afterward professor in Cornell University. 
He was ordained deacon in 1849, in Trinity 
church, Geneva, New York, by Rt. Rev. 
W H. De Lancey, D. D., and took charge 
of Zion church, Rome, New York, Decem- 
ber 1, 1849. In 1850, our subject was or- 
dained priest by Bishop De Lancey. In 



1857 he became rector of the Church of the 
Holy Communion, Chicago. On the 30th 
of June, 1859, he was chosen bishop of 
Minnesota, and took charge of the interests 
of the Episcopal church in that state, being 
located at Faribault. In i860 Bishop 
Whipple, with Revs. I. L. Breck, S. W. 
Mauncey and E. S. Peake, organized the 
Bishop Seabury Mission, out of which has 
grown the Cathedral of Our Merciful Savior, 
the Seabury Divinity School, Shattuck 
School and St. Mary's Hall, which have 
made Faribault City one of the greatest 
educational centersof the northwest. Bishop 
Whipple also became noted as the friend 
and defender of the North American In- 
dians and planted a number of successful 
missions among them. 



EZRA CORNELL was one of the greatest 
philanthropists and friends of education 
the country has known. He was born at 
Westchester Landing, New York, January 
II, 1807. He grew to manhood in his na- 
tive state and became a prominent figure in 
business circles as a successful and self-made 
man. Soon after the invention of the elec- 
tric telegraph, he devoted his attention to 
that enterprise, and accumulated an im- 
mense fortune. In 1865, by a gift of five 
hundred thousand dollars, he made possible 
the founding of Cornell University, which 
was named in his honor. He afterward 
made additional bequests amountingto many 
hundred thousand dollars. His death oc- 
curred at Ithaca, New York, December 9, 
■«74- 

TGNATIUS DONNELLY, widely knowi. 
1 as an author and politician, was born in 
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, November 3, 
1 83 1. He was educated at the public 
schocls of that city, and graduated from the 



1G2 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRArilY 



Central High School in 1849. He studied 
law in the office of Judge B. H. Brewster, 
and was admitted to the bar in 1852. In 
the spring of 1856, Mr. Donnelly emigrated 
to Minnesota, then a new territory, and, at 
Hastings, resumed the practice of law in 
partnership with A. M. Hayes. In 1857, 
and again in 1858, he was defeated for state 
senator, but in 1859 he was elected by the 
Republicans as lieutenant-governor, and re- 
elected in 1 86 1. In 1862 he was elected to 
represent the Second district of Minnesota 
in congress. He was re-elected to the same 
office in 1 864 and in 1 866. He was an 
abolitionist and warmly supported President 
Lincoln's administration, but was strongly 
in favor of leniency toward the people of 
the south, after the war. In many ways he 
was identified with some of the best meas- 
ures brought before the house during his 
presence there. In the spring of 1868, at 
the request of the Republican national com- 
mittee, he canvassed New Hampshire and 
Connecticut in the interests of that party. 
E. B. Washburne about this time made an 
attack on Donnelly in one of the papers of 
Minnesota, which was replied to on the floor 
of the house by a fierce phiilipic that will 
long be remembered. Through the inter- 
vention of the Washburne interests Mr. Don- 
nelly failed of a re-election in 1870. In 
1 ^-ji he was elected to the state senate from 
Dakota county, and continuously re-elected 
until 1878. In 1886 he was elected mem- 
ber of the house for two years. In later 
years he identified himself with the Popu- 
list party. 

In 1882, Mr. Donnelly became known as 
an author, publishing his first literary work, 
"Atlantis, the Antediluvian World," which 
passed through over twenty-two editions in 
America, several in England, and was trans- 
lated into French. This was followed by 



" Ragnarok, the Age of Fire and Gravel," 
which attained nearly as much celebrity as 
the first, and these two, in the opinion of 
scientific critics, are sufficient to stamp the 
author as a most capable and painstaking 
student of the facts he has collated in them. 
The work by which he gained the greatest 
notoriety, however, was "The Great Cryp- 
togram, or Francis Bacon's Cipher in the 
Shakespeare Plays." "Caesar's Column," 
" Dr. Huguet," and other works were pub- 
lished subsequently. 



STEVEN V. WHITE, a speculator of 
Wall Street of national reputation, was 
born in Chatham county, North Carolina, 
August 1, 1 83 1, and soon afterward re- 
moved to Illinois. His home was a log 
cabin, and until his eighteenth year he 
worked on the farm. Then after several 
years of struggle with poverty he graduated 
from Knox College, and went to St. Louis, 
where he entered a wholesale boot and shoe 
house as bookkeeper. He then studied law 
and worked as a reporter for the "Missouri 
Democrat." After his admission to the bar 
he went to New York, in 1865, and became 
a member of the banking house of Marvin 
& White. Mr. White enjoyed the reputa- 
tion of having engineered the only corner 
in Wall Street since Commodore Vander- 
bilt's time. This was the famous Lacka- 
wanna deal in 1883, in which he made a 
profit of two million dollars. He was some- 
times called " Deacon" White, and, though 
a member for many years of the Plymouth 
church, he never held that office. Mr. 
White was one of the most noted characters 
of the street, and has been called an orator, 
poet, philanthropist, linguist, abolitionist, 
astronomer, schoolmaster, plowboy, and 
trapper. He was a lawyer, ex-congress- 
man, expert accountant, art critic andtheo- 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



JUS 



logian. He laid the foundation for a 
"Home for Colored People," in Chatham 
county, North Carolina, where the greater 
part of his father's life was spent, and in 
whose memory the work was undertaken. 



JAMES A. GARFIELD, the twentieth 
president of the United States, was born 
November 19, 1831, in Cuyahoga county, 
Ohio, and was the son of Abram and Eliza 
(Baliou) Garfield. In 1833 the father, an 
industrious pioneer farmer, died, and the 
care of the family devolved upon Thomas, 
to whom James became deeply indebted for 
educational and other advantages. As James 
grew up he was industrious and worked on 
the farm, at carpentering, at chopping wood, 
or anything else he found to do, and in the 
meantime made the most of his books. 

Until he was about sixteen, James' high- 
est ambition was to become a sea captain. 
On attaining that age he walked to 
Cleveland, and, not being able to find work, 
he engaged as a driver on the Ohio & Penn- 
sylvania canal, but quit this after a short 
time. He attended the seminary at Ches- 
ter for about three years, after which he 
entered Hiram Institute, a school started by 
the Disciples of Christ in 1850. In order 
to pay his way he assumed the duties of 
janitor and at times taught school. After 
completing his course at the last named edu- 
cational institution he entered Williams Col- 
lege, from which he graduated in 1856. He 
afterward returned to Hiram College as its 
president. He studied law and was admitted 
to the bar in 1859. November n, 1858, 
Mr. Garfield and Lucretia Rudolph were 
married. 

In 1859 Mr. Garfield made his first polit- 
ical speeches, at Hiram and in the neighbor- 
hood. The same year he was elected to the 
state senate. 



On the breaking out of the war, in 186 1, 
he became lieutenant-colonel of the Forty 
second Ohio Infantry, and, while but a ne^V 
soldier, was given command of four regi- 
ments of infantry and eight companies of 
cavalry, with which he drove the Confeder- 
ates under Humphrey Marshall out of Ken 
tucky. January 11, 1862, he was commis- 
sioned brigadier-general. He participated 
with General Buell in the battle of Shiloh 
and the operations around Corinth, and was 
then detailed as a member of the Fitz John 
Porter court-martial. Reporting to General 
Rosecrans, he was assigned to the position 
of chief of staff, and resigned his position, 
with the rank of major-general, when his 
immediate superior was superseded. In- 
the fall of 1862 Mr. Garfield was elected to 
congress and remained in that body, either 
in the house or senate, until 1880. 

June 8, 1880, at the national Republican 
convention, held in Chicago, General Gar- 
field was nominated for the presidency, and 
was elected, He was inaugurated March 
4, 1 88 1, but, July 2, following, he was shot 
and fatally wounded by Charles Guiteau for 
some fancied political slight, and died Sep- 
tember 19, 1 88 1. 



INCREASE MATHER was one of the 
1 most prominent preachers, educators and 
authors of early times in the New England 
states. He was born at Dorchester, Massa- 
chusetts, June 21, 1639, and was given an 
excellent education, graduating at Harvard 
in 1656, and at Trinity College, Dublin, 
two years later. He was ordained a min- 
ister, and preached in England and America, 
and in 1664 became pastor of the North 
church, in Boston. In 1685 he became 
president of Harvard University, serving 
until 1 70 1. In 1692 he received the first 
doctorate in divinity conferred in English 



1(>4 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



speaking America. The same year he pro- 
cured in England a new charter for Massa- 
chusetts, which conferred upon himself the 
power of naming the governor, lieutenant- 
governor and council. He opposed the 
severe punishment of witchcraft, and took 
a prominent part in all public affairs of his 
day. He was a prolific writer, and became 
the author of nearly one hundred publica- 
tions, large and small. His death occurred 
August 23, 1723, at Boston. 



COTTON MATHER, a celebrated minis- 
ter in the "Puritan times" of New 
England, was born at Boston, Massachu- 
setts, February 12, 1663, being a son of 
Rev. Increase Mather, and a grandson of 
John Cotton. A biography of his father 
will be found elsewhere in this volume. 
Cotton Mather received his early education 
in his native city, was trained by Ezekiel 
Cheever, and graduated at Harvard College 
in 1678; became a teacher, and in 1684 
was ordained as associate pastor of North 
church, Boston, with his father, having by 
persistent effort overcome an impediment in 
his speech. He labored with great zeal as 
a pastor, endeavoring also, to establish the 
ascendancy of the church and ministry in 
civil affairs, and in the putting down of 
witchcraft by legal sentences, a work in 
which he took an active part and through 
which he is best known in history. He re- 
ceived the degree of D. D. in 1710, con- 
ferred by the University of Glasgow, and 
F. R. S. in 17 1 3. His death occurred at 
Boston, February 13, 1728. He was the 
author of many publications, among which 
were " Memorable Providences Relating to 
Witchcraft," "Wonders of the Invisible 
World," "Essays to Do Good," " Mag- 
nalia Christi Americana," and " Illustra- 
tions of the Sacred Scriptures." Some of 



these works are quaint and curious, full of 
learning, piety and prejudice. A well- 
known writer, in summing up the life and 
character of Cotton Mather, says: ' ' Mather, 
with all the faults of his early years, was z 
man of great excellence of character. He 
labored zealously for the benefit of the 
poor, for mariners, slaves, criminals and 
Indians. His cruelty and credulity were 
the faults of his age, while his philanthro- 
phy was far more rare in that age than in 
the present." 

WILLIAM A. PEFFER, who won a 
national reputation during the time 
he was in the United States senate, was 
born on a farm in Cumberland county, 
Pennsylvania, September 10, 1831. He 
drew his education from the public schools 
of his native state and at the age of fifteen 
taught school in winter, working on a farm 
in the summer. In June, 1853, while yet a 
young man, he removed to Indiana, and 
opened up a farm in St. Joseph county. 
In 1859 he made his way to Missouri and 
settled on a farm in Morgan county, but on 
account of the war and the unsettled state 
of the country, he moved to Illinois in Feb- 
ruary, 1862, and enlisted as a private in 
Company F, Eighty-third Illinois Infantry, 
the following August. He was promoted 
to the rank of second lieutenant in 
March, 1863, and served successively as 
quartermaster, adjutant, post adjutant, 
judge advocate of a military commission, 
and depot quartermaster in the engineer 
department at Nashville. He was mustered 
out of the service June 26, 1865. He had, 
during his leisure hours while in the army, 
studied law, and in August, 1865, he com- 
menced the practice of that profession at 
Clarksville, Tennessee. He removed to 
Kansas in 1870 and practiced there until 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



165 



1878, in the meantime establishing and 
conducting two newspapers, the " Fredonia 
Journal " and " Coffeyville Journal." 

Mr. Peffer was elected to the state senate 
in 1874 and was a prominent and influential 
member of several important committees. 
He served as a presidential elector in 1880. 
The year following he became editor of the 
" Kansas Farmer," which he made a promi- 
nent and useful paper. In 1890 Mr. Peffer 
was elected to the United States senate as 
a member of the People's party and took 
his seat March 4, 1891. After six years of 
service Senator Peffer was succeeded in 
March, 1897, by William A. Harris. 



ROBERT MORRIS.— The name of this 
financier, statesman and patriot is 
closely connected with the early history of 
the United States. He was a native of 
England, born January 20, 1734, and came 
to America with his father when thirteen 
years old. Until 1754 he served in the 
counting house of Charles Willing, then 
formed a partnership with that gentleman's 
son, which continued with great success until 
1793. In 1776 Mr. Morris was a delegate 
to the Continental congress, and, although 
once voting against the Declaration of Inde- 
pendence, signed that paper on its adop- 
tion, and was several times thereafter re- 
elected to congress. During the Revolu- 
tionary war the services of Robert Morris 
in aiding the government during its finan- 
cial difficulties were of incalculable value; he 
freely pledged his personal credit for sup- 
plies for the army, atone time to the amount 
of about one and a half million dollars, with- 
out which the campaign of 1781 would have 
been almost impossible. Mr. Morris was 
appointed superintendent of finance in 1781 
and served until 1784, continuing to employ 
his personal credit to facilitate the needs of 



his department. He also served as mem- 
ber of the Pennsylvania legislature, and 
from 1786 to 1795 was United States sena- 
tor, declining meanwhile the position of sec- 
retary of the treasury, and suggesting the 
name of Alexander Hamilton, who was ap- 
pointed to that post. During the latter 
part of his life Mr. Morris was engaged ex- 
tensively in the China trade, and later be- 
came involved in land speculations, which 
ruined him, so that the remaining days of 
this noble man and patriot were passed 
in confinement for debt. His death occurred 
at Philadelphia, May 8, 1806. 



WILLIAM SHARON, a senator and 
capitalist, and mine owner of na- 
tional reputation, was born at Smithfield, 
Ohio, January 9, 1821. He was reared 
upon a farm and in his boyhood given excel- 
lent educational advantages and in 1842 
entered Athens College. He remained in 
that institution about two years, after which 
he studied law with Edwin M. Stanton, and 
was admitted to the bar at St. Louis and 
commenced practice. His health failing, 
however, he abandoned his profession and 
engaged in mercantile pursuits at Carrollton, 
Greene county, Illinois. During the time 
of the gold excitement of 1849, Mr. Sharon 
went to California, whither so many went, 
and engaged in business at Sacramento. 
The next year he removed to San Francisco, 
where he operated in real estate. Being 
largely interested in its silver mines, he re- 
moved to Nevada, locating at Virginia City, 
and acquired an immense fortune. He be- 
came one of the trustees of the Bank of 
California, and during the troubles that 
arose on the death of William Ralston, the 
president of that institution, was largely in- 
strumental in bringing its affairs into a satis- 
factory shape. 



1GG 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



Mr. Sharon was elected to represent the 
state of Nevada in the United States senate 
in 1875, and remained a member of that 
body until 1 88 r . He was always distin- 
guished for close application to business. 
Senator Sharon died November 13, 1885. 



HENRY W. SHAW, an American hu- 
morist who became celebrated unde r 
the non-de-plume of " Josh Billings," gained 
his fame from the witticism of his writing, 
and peculiar eccentricity of style and spell- 
ing. He was born at Lanesborough, Mas- 
sachusetts, in 18 18. For twenty-five years 
he lived in different parts of the western 
states, following various lines of busmess, 
including farming and auctioneering, and in 
the latter capacity settled at Poughkeepsie, 
New York, in 1858. In 1863 he began 
writing humorous sketches for the news- 
papers over the signature of "Josh Bill- 
ings," and became immediately popular 
both as a writer and lecturer. He pub- 
lished a number of volumes of comic 
sketches and edited an " Annual Allminax " 
for a number of years, which had a wide cir- 
culation. His death occurred October 14, 
1885, at Monterey, California. 



JOHN M. THURSTON, well known 
throughout this country as a senator 
and political leader, was born at Mont- 
pelier, Vermont, August 21, 1847, of an 
old Puritan family which dated back their 
ancestry in this country to 1636, and among 
whom were soldiers of the Revolution and 
of the war of 181 2- 15. 

Young Thurston was brought west by 
the family in 1854, they settling at Madison, 
Wisconsin, and two years later at Beaver 
Dam, where John M. received his schooling 
in the public schools and at Wayland Uni- 
versity. His father enlisted as a private in 



the First Wisconsin Cavalry and died while 
in the service, in the spring of 1863. 

Young Thurston, thrown on his own 
resources while attaining an education, sup- 
ported himself by farm work, driving team 
and at other manual labor. He studied law 
and was admitted to the bar May 21, 1869. 
and in October of the same year located in 
Omaha, Nebraska. He was elected a 
member of the city council in 1872, city 
attorney in 1874 and a member of the Ne- 
braska legislature in 1874. He was a mem- 
ber of the Republican national convention 
of 1884 and temporary chairman of that of 
1888. Taking quite an interest in the 
younger members of his party he was instru- 
mental in forming the Republican League 
of the United States, of which he was presi- 
dent for two years. He was then elected a 
member of the United States senate, in 
1895, to represent the state of Nebraska. 

As an attorney John M. Thurston occu- 
pied a very prominent place, and for a num- 
ber of years held the position of general 
solicitor of the Union Pacific railroad sys- 
tem. 

JOHN JAMES AUDUBON, a celebrated 
U American naturalist, was born in Louis- 
iana, May 4, 1780, and was the son of an 
opulent French naval officer who owned a 
plantation in the then French colony. In 
his childhood he became deeply interested 
in the study of birds and their habits. About 
1794 he was sent to Paris, France, where 
he was partially educated, and studied de- 
signing under the famous painter, Jacques 
Louis David. He returned to the Unit- 
ed States about 1798, and settled on a 
farm his father gave him, on the Perkiomen 
creek in eastern Pennsylvania. He mar- 
ried Lucy Bakewell in 1808, and, disposing 
of his property, removed to Louisville, Ken- 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHT. 



167 



tucky, where he engaged in mercantile pur- 
suits. About two years later he began to 
make extensive excursions through the pri- 
meval forests of the southern and south- 
western states, in the exploration of which 
he passed many years. He made colored 
drawings of all the species of birds that he 
found. For several years he made his home 
with his wife and children at Henderson, on 
the Ohio river. It is said that about this 
time he had failed in business and was re- 
duced to poverty, but kept the wolf from the 
door by giving dancing lessons and in portrait 
painting. In 1S24, at Philadelphia, he met 
Charles Lucien Bonaparte, who encouraged 
him to publish a work on ornithology. Two 
years later he went to England and com- 
menced the publication of his great work, 
"The Birds of America." He obtained a 
large number of subscribers at one thousand 
dollars a copy. This work, embracing five 
volumes of letterpress and five volumes of 
beautifully colored plates, was pronounced 
by Cuvier " the most magnificent monument 
that art ever raised to ornithology." 

Audubon returned to America in 1829, 
and explored the forests, lakes and coast 
from Canada to Florida, collecting material 
for another work. This was his " Ornitho- 
logical Biography; or, An Account of the 
Habits of the Birds of the United States, 
Etc." He revisited England in 1831, and 
returned in 1839, after which he resicied on 
the Hudson, near New York City, in which 
place he died January 27, [851. During 
his life he issued a cheaper edition of his 
great work, and was, in association with 
Dr. Bachman, preparing a work on the 
quadrupeds of North America. 



COMMODORE THOMAS McDON- 
OUGH gained his principal fame from 
he celebrated victory which he gained over 



the superior British squadron, under Com- 
modore Downie, September 11, 18 14. Com- 
modore McDonough was born in Newcastle 
county, Delaware, December 23, 1783, and 
when seventeen years old entered the 
United States navy as midshipman, serving 
in the expedition to Tripoli, under Decatur, 
in 1803-4. in l8o 7 he was promoted to 
lieutenant, and in July, 1813, was made a 
commander. The following year, on Lake 
Champlain, he gained the celebrated victory 
above referred to, for which he was again 
promoted; also received a gold medal from 
congress, and from the state of Vermont an 
estate on Cumberland Head, in view of the 
scene of the engagement. His death oc- 
curred at sea, November 16, 1825, while he 
was returning from the command of the 
Mediterranean squadron. 



CHARLES FRANCIS HALL, one of 
America's most celebrated arctic ex- 
plorers, was born in Rochester, New Hamp- 
shire, in 182 1. He was a blacksmith by 
trade, and located in Cincinnati, where later 
he became a journalist. For several years 
he devoted a great deal of attention to cal- 
orics. Becoming interested in the fate of the 
explorer, Sir John Franklin, he joined the 
expedition fitted out by Henry Grinnell and 
sailed in the ship "George Henry," under 
Captain Buddington, which left New Lon- 
don, Connecticut, in i860. He returned in. 
1862, and two years later published his 
" Arctic Researches." He again joined the 
expedition fitted out by Mr. Grinnell, and 
sailed in the ship, " Monticello," under 
Captain Buddington, this time remaining in 
the arctic region over four years. On his 
return he brought back many evidences of 
having found trace of Franklin. 

In 1 87 1 the " Polaris " was fitted out by 
the United States government, and Captain 



168 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOORAPHT. 



Hall again sailed for the polar regions. He 
died in Greenland in October, iS/i.andthe 
"Polaris" was finally abandoned by the 
crew, a portion of which, under Captain 
Tyson, drifted with the icebergs for one 
hundred and ninety-five days, until picked 
up by the " Tigress," on the 30th of April, 
1873. The other portion of the crew built 
boats, and, after a perilous voyage, were 
picked up in June, 1873, by a whaling vessel. 



OLIVER ELLSWORTH, the third chief 
justice of the United States, was born 
at Windsor, Connecticut, April 29, 1745. 
After graduating from Princeton, he took 
up the study of law, and was licensed 
to practice in 1 77 1. In 1777 he was elected 
as a delegate to the Continental congress. 
He was judge of the superior court of his 
state in 1784, and was chosen as a delegate 
to the constitutional convention in 1787. 
He sided with the Federalists, was elected 
to the United States senate in 17S9, and 
was a firm supporter of Washington's policy. 
He won great distinction in that body, and 
was appointed chief justice of the supreme 
court of the United States by Washington 
in 1796. The relations between this coun- 
try and France having become violently 
strained, he was sent to Paris as envoy ex- 
traordinary in 1799, and was instrumental 
in negotiating the treaty that averted war. 
He resigned the following year, and was suc- 
ceeded by Chief Justice Marshall. His 
death occurred November 26, 1807. 



JW 



ELLVILLE WESTON FULLER, an 
eminent American jurist and chief 
justice of the United States supreme court, 
was born in Augusta, Maine, in 1833. His 
education was looked after in boyhood, and 
at the age of sixteen he entered Bowdoin 
College, and on graduation entered the law 



department of Harvard University. He then 
entered the law office of his uncle at Ban- 
gor, Maine, and soon after opened an office 
for the practice of law at Augusta. He was 
an alderman from his ward, city attorney, 
and editor of the " Age," a rival newspaper 
of the "Journal," which was conducted by 
James G. Blaine. He soon decided to re- 
move to Chicago, then springing into notice 
as a western metropolis. He at once iden- 
tified himself with the interests of the 
new city, and by this means acquired an 
experience that fitted him for his future 
work. He devoted himself assiduously to 
his profession, and had the good fortune to 
connect himself with the many suits grow- 
ing out of the prorogation of the Illinois 
legislature in 1863. It was not long before 
he became one of the foremost lawyers in 
Chicago. He made a three days' speech in 
the heresy trial of Dr. Cheney, which added 
to his fame. He was appointed chief jus- 
tice of the United States by President Cleve- 
land in 1888, the youngest man who ever 
held that exalted position. His income from 
his practice had for many years reached 
thirty thousand dollars annually. 



CHESTER ALLEN ARTHUR, twenty- 
first president of the United States, was 
born in Franklin county, Vermont, Octo- 
ber 5, 1830. He was educated at Union 
College, Schenectady, New York, from 
which he graduated with honor, and en- 
gaged in teaching school. After two years 
he entered the law office of Judge E. D. 
Culver, of New York, as a student. He was 
admitted to the bar, and formed a partner- 
ship with an old room-mate, Henry D. Gar- 
diner, with the intention of practicing law 
in the west, but after a few months' search 
for a location, they returned to New York 
and opened an office, and at once entered 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



109 



upon a profitable practice. He was shortly 
afterwards married to a daughter of Lieu- 
tenant Herndon, of the United States navy. 
Mrs. Arthur died shortly before his nomina- 
tion for the vice-presidency. In 1856 a 
colored woman in New York was ejected 
from a street car and retained Mr. Arthur 
in a suit against the company, and obtained 
a verdict of five hundred dollars. It result- 
ed in a general order by all superintendents 
of street railways in the city to admit col- 
ored people to the cars. 

Mr. Arthur was a delegate to the first 
Republican national convention, and was 
appointed judge-advocate for the Second 
Brigade of New York, and then chief engi- 
neer of Governor Morgan's staff. At the 
close of his term he resumed the practice of 
iaw in New York. In 1872 he was made 
collector of the port of New York, which 
position he held four years. At the Chi- 
cago convention in 1880 Mr. Arthur was 
nominated for the vice-presidency with 
Garfield, and after an exciting campaign 
was elected. Four months after the inau- 
guration President Garfield was assassinated, 
and Mr. Arthur was called to take the reins 
of government. His administration of 
affairs was generally satisfactory. At its 
close he resumed the practice of law in New 
York. His death occurred November 18, 
1886. 

ISAAC HULL was one of the most con- 
spicuous and prominent naval officers in 
the early history of America. He was born 
at Derby, Connecticut, March 9, 1775, be- 
ing the son of a Revolutionary officer. Isaac 
Hull early in life became a mariner, and 
when nineteen years of age became master 
of a merchant ship in the London trade. 
In 1 798 he became a lieutenant in the United 

States navy, and three years later was made 
10 



first lieutenant of the frigate ' ' Constitution. " 
He distinguished himself by skill and valor 
against the French on the coast of Hayti, and 
served with distinction in the Barbary expe- 
ditions. July 12, 18 1 2, he sailed from 
Annapolis, in command of the "Constitu- 
tion," and for three days was pursued by a 
British squadron of five ships, from which 
he escaped by bold and ingenious seaman- 
ship. In August of the same year he cap- 
tured the frigate " Guerriere," one of his 
late pursuers and for this, the first naval 
advantage of that war, he received a gold 
medal from congress. Isaac Hull was later 
made naval commissioner and had command 
of various navy yards. His death occurred 
February 13, 1843, at Philadelphia. 



M 



ARCUS ALONZO HANNA, famous 
as a prominent business man, political 
manager and senator, was born in New Lis- 
bon, Columbiana county, Ohio, September 
24, 1837. He removed with his father's 
family to Cleveland, in the same state, in 
1852, and in the latter city, and in the 
Western Reserve College, at Hudson, Ohio, 
received his education. He became an em- 
ploye of the wholesale grocery house of 
Hanna, Garrettson & Co., his father being 
the senior member of the firm. The latter 
died in 1862, and Marcus represented his 
interest until 1867, when the business was 
closed up. 

Our subject then became a member of 
the firm of Rhodes & Co., engaged in the 
iron and coal business, but at the expira- 
tion of ten years this firm was changed to 
that of M. A. Hanna & Co. Mr. Hanna 
was long identified with the lake carrying 
business, being interested in vessels on the 
lakes and in the construction of them. As 
a director of the Globe Ship Manufacturing 
Company, of Cleveland, president of the 



170 



COMPEXDILM OF 11 lOG RAP II V. 



Union National Bank, of Cleveland, president 
of the Cleveland City Railway Company, 
and president of the Chapin Mining Com- 
pany, o: Lake Superior, he became promi- 
nently identified with the business world. 
He was one of the government directors of 
the Union Pacific Railroad, being appointed 
to that position in 1885 by President Cleve- 
land. 

Mr. Hanna was a delegate to the na- 
tional Republican convention of 1884, which 
was his first appearance in the political 
world. He was a delegate to the con- 
ventions of 1888 and 1896, and was elect- 
ed chairman of the Republican national 
committee the latter year, and practically 
managed the campaign of William Mc Kin- 
ley for the presidency. In i897«Mr. Hanna 
was appointed senator by Governor Bush- 
nell, of Ohio, to fill the vacancy caused by 
the resignation of John Sherman. 



GEORGE PEABODY was one of the 
best known and esteemed of all philan- 
thropists, whose munificent gifts to Ameri- 
can institutions have proven of so much 
benefit to the cause of humanity. He was 
born February 18, 1795, at South Danvers, 
Massachusetts, which is now called Pea- 
body in honor of him. He received but a 
meager education, and during his early life 
he was a mercantile clerk at Thetford, Ver- 
mont, and Newburyport, Massachusetts. In 
1 8 14 he became a partner with Elisha 
Riggs, at Georgetown, District of Columbia, 
and in 1 8 1 5 they moved to Baltimore, Mary- 
Ian i. The business grew to great propor- 
tions, and they opened branch houses at 
New York and Philadelphia. Mr. Peabody 
made several voyages to Europe of com- 
mercial importance, and in 1829 became the 
head of the firm, which was then called 
Peabody, Riggs & Co., and in 1838 he re- 



moved to London, England. He retired 
from the firm, and established the cele- 
brated banking house, in which he accumu- 
lated a large fortune. He aided Mr. Grin- 
nell in fitting out Dr. Kane's Arctic expedi- 
tion, in 1852, and founded in the same year 
the Peabody Institute, in his native town, 
which he afterwards endowed with two hun- 
dred thousand dollars. Mr. Peabody visited 
the United States in 1857, and gave three 
hundred thousand dollars for the establish- 
ment at Baltimore of an institute of science, 
literature and fine arts. In 1862 he gave 
two million five hundred thousand dollars 
for the erecting of lodging houses for the 
poor in London, and on another visit to the 
United States he gave one hundred and fifty 
thousand dollars to establish at Harvard a 
museum and professorship of American 
archaeology and ethnology, an equal sum for 
the endowment of a department of physical 
science at Yale, and gave the "Southern 
Educational Fund " two million one hundred 
thousand dollars, besides devoting two hun- 
dred thousand dollars to various objects of 
public utility. Mr. Peabody made a final 
visit to the United States in 1869, and on 
this occasion he raised the endowment of 
the Baltimore Institute one million dollars, 
created the Peabody Museum, at Salem, 
Massachusetts, with a fund of one hundred 
and fifty thousand dollars, gave sixty thou- 
sand dollars to Washington College, Vir- 
ginia; fifty thousand dollars for a "Peabody 
Museum, " at North Danvers, thirty thousand 
dollars to Phillips Academy, Andover; twen- 
ty-five thousand dollars to Kenyon College, 
Ohio, and twenty thousand dollars to the 
Maryland Historical Society. Mr. Peabodj 
also endowed an art school at Rome, in 

1868. He died in London, November 4, 

1869, less then a month after he had re- 
turned from the United States, and his 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



171 



remains were brought to the United States 
and interred in his native town. He made 
several other bequests in his will, and left 
his family about five million dollars. 



MATTHEW S. QUAY, a celebrated 
public man and senator, was born at 
Dillsburgh, York county, Pennsylvania, 
September 30, 1833, of an old Scotch-Irish 
family, some of whom had settled in the 
Keystone state in 17 15. Matthew received 
a good education, graduating from the Jef- 
ferson College at Canonsburg, Pennsylvania, 
at the age of seventeen. He then traveled, 
taught school, lectured, and studied law 
under Judge Sterrett. He was admitted to 
the bar in 1854, was appointed a prothon- 
otary in 1855 and elected to the same 
office in 1856 and 1859. Later he was 
made lieutenant of the Pennsylvania Re 
serves, lieutenant-colonel and assistant com- 
missary-general of the state, private secre- 
tary of the famous war governor of Pennsyl- 
vania, Andrew G. Curtin, colonel of the 
One Hundred and Thirty-fourth Pennsylva- 
nia Infantry (nine months men), military 
state agent and held other offices at different 
times. 

Mr. Quay was a member of the house of 
representatives of the state of Pennsylvania 
from 1865 to 1868. He filled the office of 
secretary of the commonwealth from 1872 
to 1878, and the position of delegate-at- 
large to the Republican national conventions 
of 1872, 1876, 1880 and 1888. Hewasthe 
editor of the "Beaver Radical" and the 
"'Philadelphia Record" foratime, and held 
many offices in the state conventions and on 
their committees. He was elected secre- 
tary of the commonwealth of Pennsylvania, 
1869, and served three years, and in 1885 
was chosen state treasurer. In 1886 his 
great abilities pointed him out as the 



natural candidate for United States senator, 
and he was accordingly elected to that posi- 
tion and re-elected thereto in 1892. He 
was always noted for a genius for organiza- 
tion, and as a political leader had but few 
peers. Cool, serene, far-seeing, resourceful, 
holding his impulses and forces in hand, he 
never quailed from any policy he adopted, 
and carried to success most, if not all, of 
the political campaigns in which he took 
part. 

JAMES K. JONES, a noted senator and 
political leader, attained national fame 
while chairman of the national executive 
committee of the Democratic party in the 
presidential campaign of 1896. He was a 
native of Marshall county, Mississippi, and 
was born September 29, 1839. His father, 
a well-to-do planter, settled in Dallas county, 
Arkansas, in 1848, and there the subject of 
this sketch received a careful education. 
During the Civil war he served as a private 
soldier in the Confederate army. From 
1866 to 1873 he passed a quiet life as a 
planter, but in the latter year was admitted 
to the bar and began the practice of law. 
About the same time he was elected to the 
Arkansas senate and re-elected in 1874. In 
1877 he was made president of the senate 
and the following year was unsuccessful in 
obtaining a nomination as member of con- 
gress. In 1880 he was elected representa- 
tive and his ability at once placed him in a 
foremost position. He was re-elected to 
congress in 1882 and in 1884, and served as 
an influential member on the committee of 
ways and means. March 4, 1885, Mr. Jones 
took his seat in the United States senate to 
succeed James D. Walker, and was after- 
ward re-elected to the same office. In this 
branch of the national legislature his capa- 
bilities had a wider scope, and he was rec- 



172 



COMPENDIUM OE BIOGRAPHY. 



ognized as one of the ablest leaders of his 
party. 

On the nomination of William J. Bryan 
as its candidate for the presidency by the 
national convention of the Democratic 
party, held in Chicago in 1896, Mr. Jones 
was made chairman of the national com- 
mittee. 



THEODORE THOMAS, one of the most 
celebrated musical directors America 
has known, was born in the kingdom of Han- 
over in 1835, and received his musical educa- 
tion from his father. He was a very apt scholar 
and played the violin at public concerts at 
the age of six years. He came with his 
parents to America in 1845, and joined the 
orchestra of the Italian Opera in New York 
City. He played the first violin in the 
orchestra which accompanied Jenny Lind 
in her first American concert. In 1861 Mr. 
Thomas established the orchestra that be- 
came famous under his management, and 
gave his first symphony concerts in New 
York in 1864. He began his first "summer 
night concerts" in the same city in 1868, 
and in 1869 he started on his first tour of 
the principal cities in the United States, 
which he made every year for many years. 
He was director of the College of Music in 
Cincinnati, Ohio, but resigned in 1880, after 
having held the position for three years. 

Later he organized one of the greatest 
and most successful orchestras ever brought 
together in the city of Chicago, and was 
very prominent in musical affairs during the 
World's Columbian Exposition, thereby add- 
ing greatly to his fame. 



CYRUS HALL McCORMICK, the fa- 
mous inventor and manufacturer, was 
born at Walnut Grove, Virginia, February 
15, 1809. When he was seven years old his 



father invented a reaping machine. It was 
a rude contrivance and not successful. In 
1 83 1 Cyrus made his invention of a reaping 
machine, and had it patented three years 
later. By successive improvements he was 
able to keep his machines at the head of 
its class during his life. In 1 845 he removed 
to Cincinnati, Ohio, and two years later 
located in Chicago, where he amassed a 
great fortune in manufacturing reapers and 
harvesting machinery. In 1859 he estab- 
lished the Theological Seminary of the 
Northwest at Chicago, an institution for pre- 
paring young men for the ministry in the 
Presbyterian church, and he afterward en- 
dowed a chair in the Washington and Lee 
College at Lexington, Virginia. He mani- 
fested great interest in educational and re- 
ligious matters, and by his great wealth he 
was able to extend aid and encouragement 
to many charitable causes. His death oc- 
curred May 1 3, 1884. 



DAVID ROSS LOCKE.— Under the 
pen name of Petroleum V. Nasby, this 
well-known humorist and writer made for 
himself a household reputation, and estab- 
lished a school that has many imitators. 

The subject of this article was born at 
Vestal, Broome county, New York, Sep- 
tember 30, 1833. After receiving his edu- 
cation in the county of his birth he en- 
tered the office of the " Democrat, " at Cort- 
land, New York, where he learned the 
printer's trade. He was successively editor 
and publisher of the ' 'Plymouth Advertiser, " 
the "Mansfield Herald," the " Bucyrus 
Journal," and the "Findlay Jeffersonian." 
Later he became editor of the "Toledo 
Blade." In i860 he commenced his 
" Nasby" articles, several series of which 
have been given the world in book form. 
Under a mask of misspelling, and in a auaiot 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY, 



178 



and humorous style, a keen political satire 
is couched — a most effective weapon. 
Mr. Locke was the author of a num- 
ber of serious political pamphlets, and 
later on a more pretentious work, " The 
Morals of Abou Ben Adhem." As a news- 
paper writer he gained many laurels and his 
works are widely read. Abraham Lincoln 
is said to have been a warm admirer of P. 
V. Nasby, of " Confedrit X Roads" fame. 
Mr. Locke died at Toledo, Ohio, February 
15, 1888. 

RUSSELL A. ALGER, noted as a sol- 
dier, governor and secretary of war, 
was born in Medina county, Ohio, February 
27, 1836, and was the son of Russell and 
Caroline (Moulton) Alger. At the age of 
twelve years he was left an orphan and pen- 
niless. For about a year he worked for 
his board and clothing, and attended school 
part of the time. In 1850 he found a place 
which paid small wages, and out of his 
scanty earnings helped his brother and sister. 
While there working on a farm he found 
time to attend the Richfield Academy, and 
by hard work between times managed to get 
a fair education for that time. The last 
two years of his attendance at this institu- 
tion of learning he taught school during the 
winter months. In 1857 he commenced the 
study of law, and was admitted to the bar 
in 1859. For a while he found employ- 
ment in Cleveland, Ohio, but impaired 
health induced him to remove to Grand 
Rapids, where he engaged in the lumber 
business. He was thus engaged when the 
Civil war broke out, and, his business suf- 
fering and his savings swept away, he en- 
listed as a private in the Second Michigan 
Cavalry. He was promoted to be captain 
the following month, and major for gallant 
conduct at Boonesville, Mississippi, July 1, 



1862. October 16, 1862, he was made 
lieutenant-colonel of the Sixth Michigan 
Cavalry, and in February, 1863, colonel of 
the Fifth Michigan Cavalry. He rendered 
excellent service in the Gettysburg cam- 
paign. He was wounded at Boonesboro, 
Maryland, and on returning to his command 
took part with Sherman in the campaign in 
the Shenandoah Valley. For services ren- 
dered, that famous soldier recommended 
him for promotion, and he was brevetted 
major-general of volunteers. In 1866 Gen- 
eral Alger took up his residence at Detroit, 
and prospered exceedingly in his business, 
which was that of lumbering, and grew 
quite wealthy. In 1884 he was a delegate 
to the Republican national convention, and 
the same year was elected governor of 
Michigan. He declined a nomination for 
re-election to the latter office, in 1887, and 
was the following year a candidate for the 
nomination for president. In 1889 he was 
elected commander-in-chief of the Grand 
Army of the Republic, and at different 
times occupied many offices in other or- 
ganizations. 

In March, 1897, President McKinley 
appointed General Alger secretary of war. 



CYRUS WEST FIELD, the father of 
submarine telegraphy, was the son of 
the Rev. David D. Field, D.D., a Congre- 
gational minister, and was born at Stock- 
bridge, Massachusetts, November 30, 18 19. 
He was educated in his native town, and at 
the age of fifteen years became a clerk in a 
store in New York City. Being gifted with 
excellent business ability Mr. Field pros- 
pered and became the head of a large mer- 
cantile house. In 1853 he spent about six 
months in travel in South America. On his 
return he became interested in ocean teleg- 
raphy. Being solicited to aid in the c^u- 



174 



COMPEXDILM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



structton of a land telegraph across New 
Foundland to receive the news from a line 
of fast steamers it was proposed to run from 
from Ireland to St. Johns, the idea struck 
him to carry the line across the broad At- 
lantic. In 1850 Mr. Field obtained a con- 
cession from the legislature of Newfound- 
land, giving him the sole right for fifty years 
to land submarine cables on the shores of 
that island. In company with Peter Cooper, 
Moses Taylor, Marshall O. Roberts and 
Chandler White, he organized a company 
under the name of the New York, New- 
foundland & London Telegraph Company. 
In two years the line from New York across 
Newfoundland was built. The first cable 
connecting Cape Breton Island with New- 
ti'iindland having been lost in a storm while 
being laid in 1855, another was put down in 
1856. In the latter year Mr. Field went to 
London and organized the Atlantic Tele- 
graph Company, furnishing one-fourth of the 
capital himself. Both governments loaned 
ships to carry out the enterprise. Mr. Field 
accompanied the expeditions of 1S57 and 
two in 1S58. The first and second cables 
were failures, and the third worked but a 
short time a*nd then ceased. The people of 
both continents became incredulous of the 
feasibility of laying a successful cable under 
so wide an expanse of sea, and the war 
breaking out shortly after, nothing was done 
ur lit 1865-66. Mr. Field, in the former 
year, again made the attempt, and the Great 
Eastern laid some one thousand two hun- 
dred miles when the cable parted and was 
lost. The following year the same vessel 
succeeded in laying the entire cable, and 
picked up the one lost the year before, and 
both were carried to America's shore. After 
thirteen years of care and toil Mr. Field had 
his reward. He was the recipient of many 
medals and honors from both home and 



abroad. He gave his attention after this, 
to establishing telegraphic communication 
throughout the world and many other large 
enterprises, notably the construction of ele- 
vated railroads in New York. Mr. Field 
died July 1 1, 1892. 



G ROVER CLEVELAND, the twenty- 
second president of the United States, 
was born in Caldwell, Essex county, New 
Jersey, March 18, 1837, and was the son 
of Rev. Richard and Annie (Neale) Cleve- 
land. The father, of distinguished New 
England ancestry, was a Presbyterian min- 
ister in charge of the church at Caldwell at 
the time. 

When Grover was about three years of 
age the family removed to Fayetteville, 
Onondaga county, New York, where he 
attended the district school, and was in the 
academy for a short time. His father be- 
lieving that boys should early learn to labor, 
Grover entered a village store and worked 
for the sum of fifty dollars for the first year. 
While he was thus engaged the family re- 
moved to Clinton, New York, and there 
young Cleveland took up h ; s studies at the 
academy. The death of his father dashed 
all his hopes of a collegiate education, the 
family being left in straightened circum- 
stances, and Grover started out to battle 
for himself. After acting for a year (1853- 
54) as assistant teacher and bookkeeper in 
the Institution for the Blind at New York 
City, he went to Buffalo. A short time 
after he entered the law office of Rogers, 
Bowen & Rogers, of that city, and after a 
hard struggle with adverse circumstances, 
was admitted to the bar in 1859. He be- 
came confidential and managing clerk for 
the firm under whom he had studied, and 
remained with them until 1863. In the lat- 
ter year he was appointed district attorney 






COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



175 



of Erie county. It was during his incum- 
bency of this office that, on being nominated 
by the Democrats for supervisor, he came 
within thirteen votes of election, although 
the district was usually Republican by two 
hundred and fifty majority. In 1 866 Grover 
Cleveland formed a partnership with Isaac 
V. Vanderpoel. The most of the work here 
fell upon the shoulders of our subject, and 
he soon won a good standing at the bar of 
the state. In 1869 Mr. Cleveland associated 
himself in business with A. P. Laning and 
Oscar Folsom, and under the firm name of 
Laning, Cleveland & Folsom soon built up a 
fair practice. In the fall of 1870 Mr. Cleve- 
land was elected sheriff of Erie county, an 
office which he filled for four years, after 
which he resumed his profession, with L. K. 
Bass and Wilson S. Bissell as partners. 
This firm was strong and popular and 
shortly was in possession of a lucrative 
practice. Mr. Bass retired from the firm 
in 1879, and George J. Secard was admit- 
ted a member in 1881. In the latter year 
Mr. Cleveland was elected mayor of Buffalo, 
and in 1882 he was chosen governor by 
the enormous majority of one hundred and 
ninety-two thousand votes. July II, 1884, 
he was nominated for the presidency by the 
Democratic national convention, and in 
November following was elected. 

Mr. Cleveland, after serving one term as 
president of the United States, in 1888 was 
nominated by his party to succeed himself, 
but he failed of the election, being beaten 
by Benjamin Harrison. In 1892, however, 
being nominated again in opposition to the 
then incumbent of the presidency, Mr. Har- 
rison, Grover Cleveland was elected pres- 
ident for the second time and served for the 
usual term of four years. In 1897 Mr. 
Cleveland retired from the chair of the first 
nTgistrate of the nation, and in New York 



City resumed the practice of law, in which 
city he had established himself in 1889. 

'June 2, 1886, Grover Cleveland was 
united in marriage with Miss Frances Fol- 
som, the daughter of his former partner. 



ALEXANDER WINCHELL, for many 
years one of the greatest of American 
scientists, and one of the most noted and 
prolific writers on scientific subjects, was 
born in Duchess county, New York, Decem- 
ber 31, 1824. He received a thorough col- 
legiate education, and graduated at the 
Wesleyan University, Middletown, Connect- 
icut, in 1847. His mind took a scientific 
turn, which manifested itself while he was 
yet a boy, and in 1848 he became teacher 
of natural sciences at the Armenian Semi- 
nary, in his native state, a position which 
he filled for three years. In 185 1-3 he oc- 
cupied the same position in the Mesopo- 
tamia Female Seminary, in Alabama, after 
which he was president of the Masonic Fe- 
male Seminary, in Alabama. In 1853 he 
became connected with the University of 
Michigan, at Ann Arbor, at which institu- 
tion he performed the most important work 
of his life, and gained a wide reputation as 
a scientist. He held many important posi- 
tions, among which were the following: 
Professor of physics and civil engineering at 
the University of Michigan, aiso of geology, 
zoology and botany, and later professor of 
geology and palaeontology at the same insti- 
tution. He also, for a time, was president 
of the Michigan Teachers' Association, and 
state geologist of Michigan. Professor 
Winchell was a very prolific writeron scien- 
tific subjects, and published many standard 
works, his most important and widely known 
being those devoted to geology. He also 
contributed a large number of articles to 
scientific and popular journals. 



176 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



ANDREW HULL FOOTE, of the 
United States navy, was a native of 
New England, born at New Haven, Con- 
necticut, May 4, 1808. He entered the 
navy, as a midshipman, December 4, 1822. 
He slowly rose in his chosen profession, at- 
taining the rank of lieutenant in 1830, com- 
mander in 1852 and captain in 1861. 
Among the distinguished men in the break- 
ing out of the Civil war, but few stood higher 
in the estimation of his brother officers than 
Foote, and when, in the fall of 1861, he 
was appointed to the command of the flotilla 
then building on the Mississippi, the act 
gave great satisfaction to the service. 
Although embarrassed by want of navy 
yards and supplies, Foote threw himself into 
his new work with unusual energy. He 
overcame all obstacles and in the new, and, 
until that time, untried experiment, of creat- 
ing and maintaining a navy on a river, 
achieved a success beyond the expectations 
of the country. Great incredulity existed as 
to the possibility of carrying on hostilities 
on a river where batteries from the shore 
might bar the passage. But in spite of all, 
Foote soon had a navy on the great river, 
and by the heroic qualities of the crews en- 
trusted to him, demonstrated the utility of 
this new departure in naval architecture. 
All being prepared, February 6, 1862, Foote 
took Fort Henry after a hotly-contested 
action. On the 14th of the same month, 
for an hour and a half engaged the batteries 
of Fort Donelson, with four ironclads and 
two wooden gunboats, thereby dishearten- 
ing the garrison and assisting in its capture. 
April 7th of the same year, after several 
hotly-contested actions, Commodore Foote 
received the surrender of Island No. 10, one 
of the great strongholds of the Confederacy 
on the Mississippi river. Foote having been 
wounded at Fort Donelson, and by neglect 



it having become so serious as to endanger 
his life, he was forced to resign his command 
and return home. June 16, 1862, he re- 
ceived the thanks of congress and was pro- 
moted to the rank of rear admiral. He was 
appointed chief of the bureau of equipment 
and recruiting. June 4, 1863, he was 
ordered to the fleet off Charleston, to super- 
cede Rear Admiral Dupont, but on his way 
to that destination was taken sick at New 
York, and died June 26, 1863. 



NELSON A. MILES, the well-known sol- 
dier, was born at Westminster, Massa- 
chusetts, August 8, 1 839. His ancestors set- 
tled in that state in 1643 among the early 
pioneers, and their descendants were, many 
of them, to be found among those battling 
against Great Britain during Revolutionary 
times and during the war of 1812. Nelson 
was reared on a farm, received an acadepiic 
education, and in early manhood engaged in 
mercantile pursuits in Boston. Early in 

1 86 1 he raised a company and offered hi? 
services to the government, and although 
commissioned as captain, on account of his 
youth went out as first lieutenant in the 
Twenty-second Massachusetts Infantry. In 

1862 he was commissioned lieutenant-colonel 
and colonel of the Sixty-first New York In- 
fantry. At the request of Generals Grant 
and Meade he was made a brigadier by 
President Lincoln. He participated in all 
but one of the battles of the Army of the 
Potomac until the close of the war. During 
the latter part of the time he commanded 
the first division of the Second Corps. 
General Miles was wounded at the battles 
of Fair Oaks, Fredericksburg and Chan- 
cellorsville, and received four brevets for 
distinguished service. During the recon- 
struction period he commanded in North 
Carolina, and on the reorganization of the 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHi: 



111 



regular army he was made colonel of in- 
fantry. In 1880 he was promoted to the 
rank of brigadier-general, and in 1890 to 
that of major-general. He successfully con- 
ducted several campaigns among the In- 
dians, and his name is known among the 
tribes as a friend when they are peacefully 
inclined. He many times averted war 
with the red men by judicious and humane 
settlement of difficulties without the military 
power. In 1892 General Miles was given 
command of the proceedings in dedicating 
the World's Fair at Chicago, and in the 
summer of 1894, during the great railroad 
strike at the same city, General Miles, then 
in command of the department, had the 
disposal of the troops sent to protect the 
United States mails. On the retirement of 
General J. M. Schofield, in 1895, General 
Miles became the ranking major-general of 
the United States army and the head of its 
forces. 

JUNIUS BRUTUS BOOTH, the great 
actor, though born in London (1796), is 
more intimately connected with the Amer- 
ican than with the English stage, and his 
popularity in America was almost un- 
bounded, while in England he was not a 
prime favorite. He presented " Richard III. " 
in Richmond on his first appearance on the 
American stage in 1S21. This was his 
greatest role, and in it he has never had an 
equal. In October of the same year he 
appeared in New York. After a long and 
successful career he gave his final perform- 
ance at New Orleans in 1852. He con- 
tracted a severe cold, and for lack of proper 
medical attention, it resulted in his death 
on November 30th of that year. He was, 
without question, one of the greatest tra- 
gedians that ever lived. In addition to his 
professional art and genius, he was skilled 



in languages, drawing, painting and sculp- 
ture. In his private life he was reserved, 
and even eccentric. Strange stories are 
related of his peculiarities, and on his farm 
near Baltimore he forbade the use of animal 
food, the taking of animal life, and even the 
felling of trees, and brought his butter and 
eggs to the Baltimore markets in person. 

Junius Brutus Booth, known as the elder 
Booth, gave to the world three sons of note: 
Junius Brutus Booth, Jr., the husband of 
Agnes Booth, the actress; John Wilkes 
Booth, the author of the greatest tragedy 
in the life of our nation; Edwin Booth, in 
his day the greatest actor of America, if not 
of the world. 

TAMES MONTGOMERY BAILEY, fa- 
J mous as the "Danbury News Man," 
was one of the best known American humor- 
ists, and was born September 25, 1841, at 
Albany, N. Y. He adopted journalism as a 
profession and started in his chosen work on 
the "Danbury Times," which paper he pur- 
chased on his return from the war. Mr. 
Bailey also purchased the "Jeffersonian," 
another paper of Danbury, and consolidated 
them, forming the "Danbury News," which 
paper soon acquired a celebrity throughout 
the United States, from an incessant flow of 
rich, healthy, and original humor, which the 
pen of the editor imparted to its columns, 
and he succeeded in raising the circulation 
of the paper from a few hundred copies a 
week to over forty thousand. The facilities 
of a country printing office were not so com- 
plete in those days as they are now, but Mr. 
Bailey was resourceful, and he put on re- 
lays of help and ran his presses night and 
day, and always prepared his matter a week 
ahead of time. The "Danbury News Man" 
was a new figure in literature, as his humor 
was so different from that of the newspaper 



178 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



wits — who had preceded him, and he maybe 
called the pioneer of that school now so 
familiar. Mr. Bailey published in book 
form "Life in Danbury" and "The Danbury 
News Man's Almanac. " One of his most 
admirable traits was philanthrophy, as he 
gave with unstinted generosity to all comers, 
and died comparatively poor, notwithstand- 
ing his ownership of a very profitable busi- 
ness which netted him an income of $40,000 
a year. He died March 4, 1894. 



MATTHEW HALE CARPENTER, a 
famous lawyer, orator and senator, 
was born in Moretown, Vermont, December 
22, 1824. After receiving a common-school 
education he entered the United States 
Military Academy at West Point, but only 
remained two years. On returning to his 
home he commenced the study of law with 
Paul Dillingham, afterwards governor of 
Vermont, and whose daughter he married. 
In 1847 he was admitted to practice at the 
bar in Vermont, but he went to Boston and 
for atime studied with Ruf us Choate. In 184S 
he moved wes-t, settling at Beloit, Wisconsin, 
and commencing the practice of his profes- 
sion soon obtained a wide reputation for 
ability. In 1S56 Mr. Carpenter removed to 
Milwaukee, where he found a wider field for 
his now increasing powers. During the 
Civil war, although a strong Democrat, he 
was loyal to the government and aided the 
Union cause to his utmost. In 18GS he 
was counsel for the government in a test 
case to settle the legality of the reconstruc- 
tion act before the United States supreme 
court, and won his case against Jeremiah S. 
Black. This gave him the election for sen- 
ator from Wisconsin in 1869, and he served 
until 1875, during part of which time he was 
president pro tempore of the senate. Failing 
oi a re-election Mr. Carpenter resumed the 



practice of law, and when William W. 
Belknap, late secretary of war, was im- 
peached, entered the case for General 
Belknap, and secured an acquittal. During 
the sitting of the electoral commission of 
1877, Mr. Carpenter appeared for Samuel 
J. Tilden, although the Republican man- 
agers had intended to have him represent 
R. B. Hayes. Mr. Carpenter was elected 
to the United States senate again in 1879, 
and remained a member of that body until 
the day of his death, which occurred at 
Washington, District of Columbia, Feb- 
ruary 24, 1 8S f . 

Senator Carpenter's real name was De- 
catur Merritt Hammond Carpenter but about 
1852 he changed it to the one by which he 
was universally known. 



T 



HOMAS E. WATSOX, lawyer and 
congressman, the well-known Geor- 
gian, whose name appears at the head of 
this sketch, made himself a place in the his- 
tory of our country by his ability, energy 
and fervid oratory. He was born in Col- 
umbia (now McDuffie) county, Georgia, 
September 5, 1S56. He had a common- 
school education, and in 1872 entered Mer- 
cer University, at Macon, Georgia, as fresh- 
man, but for want of money left the college 
at the end of his sophomore year. He 
taught school, studying law at the same 
time, until 1875, when he was admitted to 
the bar. He opened an office and com- 
menced practice in Thomson, Georgia, in 
November, 1 876. He carried on a success- 
ful business, and bought land and farmed on 
an extensive scale. 

Mr. Watson was a delegate to the Demo- 
cratic state convention of 1880, and was a 
member of the house of representatives of 
the legislature of his native state in 1S82 
In 1888 he was an elector-at-large on the 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



179 



Cleveland ticket, and in 1890 was elected 
to represent his district in the fifty-second 
congress. This latter election is said to have 
been due entirely to Mr. Watson's "dash- 
ing display of ability, eloquence and popular 
power." In his later years he championed 
the alliance principles and policies until he 
became a leader in the movement. In the 
heated campaign of 1896, Mr. Watson was 
nominated as the candidate for vice-presi- 
dent on the Bryan ticket by that part of the 
People's party that would not endorse the 
nominee for the same position made by the 
Democratic party. 



FREDERICK A. P. BARNARD, mathe- 
matician, physicist and educator, was 
born in Sheffield, Massachusetts, May 5, 1 809. 
He graduated from Yale College in 1828, and 
in 1830 became a tutor in the same. From 
1837 to 1848 he was professor of mathe- 
matics and natural philosophy in the Uni- 
versity of Alabama, and from 1848 to 1850, 
professor of chemistry and natural history 
in the same educational institution. In 
1854 he became connected with the Univer- 
sity of Mississippi, of which he became 
president in 1856, and chancellor in 1858. 
In 1854 he took orders in the Protestant 
Episcopal church. In 1861 Professor Barnard 
resigned his chancellorship and chair in the 
university, and in 1S63 and 1864 was con- 
nected with the United States coast survey 
in charge of chart printing and lithography. 
In May, 1864, he was elected president of 
Columbia College, New York City, which 
he served for a number of years. 

Professor Barnard received the honorary 
degree of LL. D. from Jefferson College, 
Mississippi, in 1855, and from Yale College 
in 1859; also the degree of S. T. D. from 
the University of Mississippi in 1S61, and 
th?.t of L. H. D. from the regents of the 



University of the State of New York in 1 872. 
In i860 he was a member of the eclipse 
party sent by the United States coast sur- 
vey to Labrador, and during his absence 
was elected president of the American Asso- 
ciation for the Advancement of Science. la 
the act of congress establishing the National 
Academy of Sciences in 1863, he was named 
as one of the original corporators. In 1867 
he was one of the United States commis- 
sioners to the Paris Exposition. He was 
a member of the American Philosophical 
Society, associate member of the Amer- 
ican Academy of Arts and Sciences, and 
many other philosophical and scientific 
societies at home and abroad. Dr. Barnard 
was thoroughly identified with the progress 
of the age in those branches. His published 
works relate wholly to scientific or educa- 
tional subjects, chief among which are the 
following: Report on Collegiate Education; 
Art Culture; History of the American Coast 
Survey; University Education; Undulatory 
Theory of Light; Machinery and Processes 
of the Industrial Arts, and Apparatus of the 
Exact Sciences, Metric System of Weights 
and Measures, etc. 



EDWIN McMASTERS STANTON, the 
secretary of war during the great Civil 
war, was recognized as one of America's 
foremost public men. He was born Decem- 
ber 19, 18 14, at Steubenville, Ohio, where 
he received his education and studied law. 
He was admitted to the bar in 1836, and 
was reporter of the supreme court of Ohio 
from .1842 until 1845. He removed to 
Washington in 1856 to attend to his prac- 
tice before the United States supreme 
court, and in 1858 he went to California as 
counsel for the government in certain land 
cases, which he carried to a successful 
conclusion. Mr. Stanton was appointed 



130 



COMPEXDHWr OF MOliRAPIfY. 



attorney-general of the United States in 
December, 1860, by President Buchanan. 
On March 4, 1861, Mr. Stanton went with 
the outgoing administration and returned to 
the practice of his profession. He was 
appointed secretary of war by President 
Lincoln January 20, 1862, to succeed Simon 
Cameron. After the assassination of Presi- 
dent Lincoln and the accession of Johnson 
to the presidency, Mr. Stanton was still in 
the same office. He held it for three years, 
and by his strict adherence to the Repub- 
lican party, he antagonized President John- 
son, who endeavored to remove him. On 
August 5, 1867, the president requested him 
to resign, and appointed General Grant to 
succeed him, but when congress convened 
in December the senate refused to concur in 
the suspension. Mr. Stanton returned to 
his post until the president again removed 
him from office, but was again foiled by 
congress. Soon after, however, he retired 
voluntarily from office and took up the 
practice of law, in which he engaged until 
his death, on December 24, 1869. 



ALEXANDER CAMPBELL the eminent 
theologian and founder of the church 
known as Disciples of Christ, was born in 
the country of Antrim, Ireland, in June, 
17S8, and was the son of Rev. Thomas 
Campbell, a Scoth-Irish "Seceder. " After 
studying at the University of Glasgow, he, 
in company with his father, came to America 
in 1808, and both began labor in western 
Pennsylvania to restore Christianity to 
apostolic simplicity. They organized a 
church at Brush Run, Washington count}', 
Pennsylvania, in 181 1, which, however, the 
year following, adopted Baptist views, and 
in 1 81 3, with other congregations joined a 
Baptist association. Some of the under- 
lying principles and many practices of the 



Campbells and their disciples were repug- 
nant to the Baptist church and considerable 
friction was the result, and 1827 saw the 
separation of that church from the Church 
of Christ, as it is sometimes calied. The 
latter then reorganized themselves anew. 
They reject all creeds, professing to receive 
the Bible as their only guide. In most mat- 
ters of faith they are essentially in accord with 
the other Evangelical Christian churches, 
especially in regard to the person and work 
of Christ, the resurrection and judgment. 
They celebrate the Lord's Supper weekly, 
hold that repentance and faith should precede 
baptism, attaching much importance to the 
latter ordinance. On all other points they 
encourage individual liberty of thought. In 
1 841, Alexander Campbell founded Bethany 
College, West Virginia, of which he was 
president for many years, and died March 4, 
1866. 

The denomination which they founded 
is quite a large and important church body- 
in the United States. They support quite 
a number of institutions of learning, among 
which are: Bethany College, West Virginia; 
Hiram College, Hiram, Ohio; Northwestern 
Christian University, Indianapolis, Indiana; 
Eureka College, Illinois; Kentucky Univer- 
sity, Lexington, Kentucky; Oskaloosa 
College, Iowa; and a number of seminaries 
and schools. They also support several 
monthly and quarterly religious periodicals 
and many papers, both in the United States 
and Great Britain and her dependencies. 



WILLIAM L.WILSON, the noted West 
Virginian, who was postmaster-gener- 
al under President Cleveland's second ad- 
ministration, won distinction as the father 
of the famous " Wilson bill," which became 
a law under the same administration. Mr. 
Wilson was born May 3, 1843, in Jeffer- 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPMT. 



181 



son county, West Virginia, and received 
a good education at the Charlestown 
Academy, where he prepared himself for 
college. He attended the Columbian Col- 
lege in the District of Columbia, from 
which he graduated in i860, and then 
attended the University of Virginia. Mr. 
Wilson served in the Confederate army dur- 
ing the war, after which he was a professor 
in Columbian College. Later he entered 
into the practice of law at Charlestown. 
He attended the Democratic convention 
held at Cincinnati in 1880, as a delegate, 
and later was chosen as one of the electors 
for the state-at-large on the Hancock 
ticket. In the Democratic convention at 
Chicago in 1892, Mr. Wilson was its per- 
manent president. He was elected pres- 
ident of the West Virginia University in 
1882, entering upon the duties of his office 
on September 6, but having received the 
nomination for the forty-seventh congress 
on the Democratic ticket, he resigned the 
presidency of the university in June, 1883, 
to take his seat in congress. Mr. Wil- 
son was honored by the Columbian Uni- 
versity and the Hampden-Sidney College, 
both of which conferred upon him the de- 
gree of LL. D. In 1884 he was appointed 
regent of the Smithsonian Institution at 
Washington for two years, and at the end 
of his term was re-appointed. He was 
elected to the forty-seventh, forty-ninth, 
fiftieth, fifty-first, fifty-second and fifty- 
third congresses, but was defeated for re- 
election to the fifty-fourth congress. Upon 
the resignation of Mr. Bisseil from the office 
of postmaster-general, Mr. Wilson was ap- 
pointed to fill the vacancy by President 
Cleveland. Hi.- many years of public serv- 
ice and the prominent part he took in the 
discussion of public questions gave him a 
national reputation. 



CALVIN S. BRICE, a successful and 
noted financier and politician, was 
born at Denmark, Ohio, September 17, 
1845, of an old Maryland family, who trace 
their lineage from the Bryces, or Bruces, of 
Airth, Scotland. The father of our subject 
was a prominent Presbyterian clergyman, 
who removed to Ohio in 1S12. Calvin S. 
Brice was educated in the common schools 
of his native town, and at the age of thir- 
teen entered the preparatory department of 
Miami University at Oxford, Ohio, and the 
following year entered the freshman class. 
On the breaking out of the Civil war, 
although but fifteen years old, he enlisted in 
a company of three-months men. He re- 
turned to complete his college course, but 
re-enlisted in Company A, Eighty-sixth 
Ohio Infantry, and served in the Virginia 
campaign. He then returned to college, 
from which he graduated in 1863. In 1864 
he organized Company E, One Hundred 
and Eightieth Ohio Infantry, and served 
until the close of hostilities, in the western 
armies. 

On his return home Mr. Brice entered 
the law department of the University of 
Michigan, and in 1866 was admitted to the 
bar in Cincinnati. In the winter of 1S70- 
71 he went to Europe in the interests of the 
Lake Erie & Louisville Railroad and pro- 
cured a foreign loan. This road became 
the Lake Erie & Western, of which, in 
1887, Mr. Brice became president. This 
was the first railroad in which he had a 
personal interest. The conception, build- 
ing and sale of the New York, Chicago & 
St. Louis Railroad, known as the "Nickel 
Plate," was largely due to him. He was 
connected with many other railroads, among 
which may be mentioned the following: 
Chicago & Atlantic; Ohio Central; Rich- 
mond & Danville; Richmond & West Point 



1 $2 



COMPENDICM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



Terminal; East Tennessee, Virginia & 
Georgia; Memphis & Charleston; Mobile & 
Birmingham; Kentucky Central; Duluth, 
South Shore & Atlantic, and the Marquette, 
Houghton & Ontonagon. In 1890 he was 
elected United States senator from Ohio. 
Notwithstanding his extensive business inter- 
ests, Senator Brice gave a considerable 
time to political matters, becoming one of 
the leaders of the Democratic party and one 
of the most widely known men in the 
country. 

BENJAMIN HARRISON, twenty-third 
president of the United States, was 
born August 20, 1833, at North Bend, 
Hamilton county, Ohio, in the house of his 
grandfather, General William Henry Har- 
rison, afterwards president of the United 
States. His great-grandfather, Benjamin 
Harrison, was a member of the Continental 
congress, signed the Declaration of Inde- 
pendence, and was three times elected gov- 
ernor of Virginia. 

The subject of this sketch entered Farm- 
ers College at an early age, and two years 
later entered Miami University, at Oxford, 
Ohio. Upon graduation he entered the 
office of Stover & Gwyne, of Cincinnati, as a 
law student. He was admitted to the bar 
two years later, and having inherited about 
eight hundred dollars worth of property, he 
married the daughter of Doctor Scott, pres- 
ident of a female school at Oxford, Ohio, 
and selected Indianapojis, Indiana, to begin 
practice. In i860 he was nominated by 
the Republicans as candidate for state 
supreme court reporter, and did his first 
political speaking in that campaign. He 
was elected, and after two years in that 
position he organized the Seventieth Indi- 
ana Infantry, of which he was made colonel, 
and with his regiment joined General Sher- 



man's army. For bravery displayed at Re- 
saca and Peach Tree Creek he was made a 
brigadier-general. In the meantime the 
office of supreme court reporter had been 
declared vacant, and another party elected 
to fill it. In the fall of 1864, having been 
nominated for that office, General Harrison 
obtained a thirty-day leave of absence, went 
to Indiana, canvassed the state and was 
elected. As he was about to rejoin his 
command he was stricken down by an attack 
of fever. After his recovery he joined 
General Sherman's army and participated in 
the closing events of the war. 

In 1868 General Harrison declined to 
be a candidate for the office of supreme 
court reporter, and returned to the practice 
of the law. His brilliant campaign for the 
office of governor of Indiana in 1876, 
brought hiir into public notice, although he 
was defeated. He took a prominent part 
in the presidential canvass of 1880, and was 
chosen United States senator from Indiana, 
serving six years. He then returned to the 
practice of his profession. In 1888 he was 
selected by the Republican convention at 
Chicago as candidate for the presidency, and 
after a heated campaign was elected over 
Cleveland. He was inaugurated March 4, 
1889, and signed the McKinley bill October 
1, 1890, perhaps the most distinctive feature 
of his administration. In 1892 he was 
again the nominee of the Republican party 
for president, but was defeated by Grover 
Cleveland, the Democratic candidate, and 
again resumed the practice of law in Indian- 
apolis. 

JOHN CRAIG HAVEMEYER, the 
celebrated merchant and sugar refiner, 
was born in New York City in 1833. His 
father, William F. Havemeyer, and grand- 
father, William Havemeyer, were both sugar 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHT. 



183 



refiners. The latter named came from 
Buckeburg, Germany, in 1799, and settled 
in New York, establishing one of the first 
refineries in that city. William F. succeeded 
his father, and at an early age retired from 
business with a competency. He was three 
times mayor of his native city, New York. 
John C. Havemeyer was educated in 
private schools, and was prepared for college 
at Columbia College grammar school. 
Owing to failing eyesight he was unable to 
finish his college course, and began his 
business career in a wholesale grocery store, 
where he remained two years. In 1854, 
after a year's travel abroad, he assumed the 
responsibility of the office work in the sugar 
refinery of Havemeyer & Molter, but two 
years later etablished a refinery of his own 
in Brooklyn. This afterwards developed into 
the immense business of Havemeyer & Elder. 
The capital was furnished by his father, 
and, chafing under the anxiety caused by the 
use of borrowed money, he sold out his 
interest and returned to Havemeyer & 
Molter. This firm dissolving the next year, 
John C. declined an offer of partnership 
from the successors, not wishing to use 
borrowed money. For two years he remain- 
ed with the house, receiving a share of the 
profits as compensation. For some years 
thereafter he was engaged in the commission 
business, until failing health caused his 
retirement. In 1871, he again engaged in 
the sugar refining business at Greenport, 
Long Island, with his brother and another 
partner, under the firm name of Havemeyer 
Brothers & Co. Here he remained until 
1880, when his health again declined. 
During the greater part of his life Mr. 
Havemeyer was identified with many benev- 
olent societies, including the New York 
Port Society, Missionary Society of the 
Methodist Church, American Bible Society, 



New York Sabbath School Society and 
others. He was active in Young Men's 
Christian Association work in New York. 
and organized and was the first president of 
an affiliated society of the same at Yonkers. 
He was director of several railroad corpo- 
rations and a trustee of the Continental Trust 
Company of New York. 



WALTER QUINTIN GRESHAM, an 
eminent American statesman and 
jurist, was born March 17, 1833, near Cory- 
don, Harrison county, Indiana. He ac- 
quired his education in the local schools of 
the county and at Bloomington Academy, 
although he did not graduate. After leav- 
ing college he read law with Judge Porter 
at Corydon, and just before the war he be- 
gan to take an interest in politics. Mr. 
Gresham was elected to the legislature from 
Harrison county as a Republican; previous 
to this the district had been represented by 
a Democrat. At the commencement of 
hostilities he was made lieutenant-colonel of 
the Thirty-eighth Indiana Infantry, but 
served in that regiment only a short time, 
when he was appointed colonel of the Fifty- 
third Indiana, and served under General 
Grant at the siege of Vicksburg as brigadier- 
general. Later he was under Sherman in 
the famous "March to the Sea," and com- 
manded a division of Blair's corps at the 
siege of Atlanta where he was so badly 
wounded in the leg that he was compelled 
to return home. On his way home he was 
forced to stop at New Albany, where he re- 
mained a year before he was able to leave. 
Pie was brevetted major-general at the close 
of the war. While at New Albany, Mr. 
Gresham was appointed state agent, his 
duty being to pay the interest on the state 
debt in New York, and he ran twice for 
congress against ex-Speaker Kerr, but was 



184 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



defeated in both cases, although he greatly 
reduced the Democratic majority. He was 
held in high esteem by President Grant, 
who offered him the portfolio of the interior 
but Mr. Gresham declined, but accepted 
the appointment of United States judge for 
Indiana to succeed David McDonald. 
Judge Gresham served on the United States 
district court bench until 1883, when he 
was appointed postmaster-general by Presi- 
dent Arthur, but held that office only a few 
months when he was made secretary of the 
treasury. Near the end of President 
Arthur's term. Judge Gresham was ap- 
pointed judge of the United States circuit 
court of the district composed of Indiana, 
Illinois and contiguous states, which he held 
until 1893. Judge Gresham was one of the 
presidential possibilities in the National Re- 
publican convention in 1888, when General 
Harrison was nominated, and was also men- 
tioned for president in 1892. Later the 
People'r, party made a strenuous effort to 
induce him to become their candidate for 
president, he refusing the offer, however, 
and a few weeks before the election he an- 
nounced that he would support Mr. Cleve- 
land, the Democratic nominee for president. 
Upon the election of Mr. Cleveland in the 
fall of 1892, Judge Gresham was made the 
secretary of state, and filled that position 
until his death on May 28, 1895, at Wash- 
ington, District of Columbia. 



ELISHA B. ANDREWS, noted as an ed- 
ucator and college president, was born 
at Hinsdale, New Hampshire, January 10, 
1844, his father and mother being Erastus 
and Elmira (Bartlett) Andrews. In 1861, 
he entered the service of the general gov- 
ernment as private and non-commissioned 
officer in the First Connecticut Heavy Ar- 
tillery, and in 1863 was promoted to the 



rank of second lieutenant. Returning home 
he was prepared for college at Powers In- 
stitute and at the Wesleyan Academy, and 
entered Brown University. From here he 
was graduated in 1870. For the succeeding 
two years he was principal of the Connecti- 
cut Literary Institute at Suffield, Connecticut. 
Completing a course at the Newton Theo- 
logical Institute, he was ordained pastor of 
the First Baptist church at Beverly, Massa- 
chusetts, July 2, 1874. The following 
year he became president of the Denison 
University, at Granville, Ohio. In 1879 
he accepted the professorship of homiletics, 
pastoral duties and church polity at Newton 
Theological Institute. In 1882 he was 
elected to the chair of history and political 
economy at Brown University. The Uni- 
versity of Nebraska honored him w^ith an 
LL. D. in 1884, and the same year Colby 
University conferred the degree of D. D. 
In 1888 he became professor of political 
economy and public economy at Cornell 
University, but the next year returned to 
Brown University as its president. From 
the time of his inauguration the college work 
broadened in many ways. Many timely 
and generous donations from friends and 
alumni of the college were influenced by 
him, and large additions made -to the same. 
Professor Andrews published, in 1887, 
"Institutes of General History," and in 
1888, " Institutes of Economics." 



JOHN WILLIAM DRAPER, the subject 
of the present biography, was, during his 
life, one of the most distinguished chemists 
and scientific writers in America. He was 
an Englishman by birth, born at Liverpool, 
May 5, 181 1, and was reared in his native 
land, receiving an excellent education, 
graduating at the University of London. In 
1833 he came to the United States, and 




g JjLYSlS S.SRANIi 



■ ^[ROBERT ELF 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



187 



settled first in Pennsylvania. He graduated 
in medicine at the University of Philadel- 
phia, in 1836, and for three years following 
was professor of chemistry and physiology 
at Hampden-Sidney College. He then be- 
came professor of chemistry in the New York 
University, with which institution he was 
prominently connected for many years. It 
is stated on excellent authority that Pro- 
fessor Draper, in 1839, took the first photo- 
graphic picture ever taken from life. He 
was a great student, and carried on many 
important and intricate experiments along 
scientific lines. He discovered many of the 
fundamental facts of spectrum analysis, 
which he published. He published a number 
of works of great merit, many of which are 
recognized as authority upon the subjects of 
which they treat. Among his work were: 
"Human Physiology, Statistical and Dyna- 
mical of the Conditions and Cause of Life 
in Man," "History of Intellectual Develop- 
ment of Europe," " History of the Ameri- 
can Civil War," besides a number of works 
on chemistry, optics and mathematics. Pro- 
fessor Draper continued to hold a high place 
among the scientific scholars of America 
until his death, which occurred in January, 
1882. 

GEORGE W. PECK, ex-governor of 
the state of Wisconsin and a famous 
journalist and humorist, was born in Jeffer- 
son county, New York, September 28, 1840. 
When he was about three years of age his 
parents removed to Wisconsin, settling near 
Whitewater, where young Peck received his 
education at the public schools. At fifteen 
he entered the office of the "Whitewater 
Register," where he learned the printer's 
art. He helped start the "Jefferson County 
Republican" later on, but sold out his 

interest therein and set type in the office of 
11 



the "State Journal," at Madison. At the 
outbreak of the war he enlisted in the 
Fourth Wisconsin Cavalry as a private, and 
after serving four years returned a second 
lieutenant. He then started the " Ripon 
Representative," which he sold not long 
after, and removing to New York, was on 
the staff of Mark Pomeroy's "Democrat." 
Going to La Crosse, later, he conducted the 
La Crosse branch paper, a half interest in 
which he bought in 1874. He next started 
"Peck's Sun," which four years later he 
removed to Milwaukee. While in La 
Crosse he was chief of police one year, and 
also chief clerk of the Democratic assembly 
in 1874. It was in 1878 that Mr. Peck 
took his paper to Milwaukee, and achieved 
his first permanent success, the circulation 
increasing to 80,000. For ten years he was 
regarded as one of the most original, versa- 
tile and entertaining writers in the country, 
and he has delineated every phase of 
country newspaper life, army life, domestic 
experience, travel and city adventure. Up 
to 1890 Mr. Peck took but little part in 
politics, but in that year was elected mayor 
of Milwaukee on the Democratic ticket. 
The following August he was elected gov- 
ernor of Wisconsin by a large majority, 
the "Bennett School Bill" figuring to a 
large extent in his favor. 

Mr. Peck, besides many newspaper arti- 
cles in his peculiar vein and numerous lect- 
ures, bubbling over with fun, is known to 
fame by the following books: "Peck's Bad 
Boy and his Pa," and "The Grocery Man 
and Peck's Bad Boy." 



CHARLES O'CONOR, who was for 
many years the acknowledged leader 
of the legal profession of New York City, 
was also conceded to be one of the greatest 
lawyers America has produced. He was 



188 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



born in New York City in 1804, his father 
being an educated Irish gentleman. Charles 
received a common-school education, and 
early took up the study of law, being ad- 
mitted to practice in 1824. His close ap- 
plication and untiring energy and industry 
soon placed him in the front rank of the 
profession, and within a few years he was 
handling many of the most important cases. 
One of the first great cases he had and which 
gained him a wide reputation, was that of 
'• Jack, the Fugitive Slave," in 1835, in which 
his masterful argument before the supreme 
court attracted wide attention and com- 
ment. Charles O'Conor was a Democrat 
all his life. He did not aspire to office- 
holding, however, and never held any office 
except that of district attorney under Presi- 
dent Pierce's administration, which he only 
retained a. short time. He took an active 
interest, however, in public questions, and 
was a member of the state (New York) con- 
stitutional convention in 1864. In 1868 he 
was nominated for the presidency by the 
" Extreme Democrats." His death occurred 
in May, 1884. 

SIMON BOLIVAR BUCKNER, a noted 
American officer and major-general in 
the Confederate army, was born in Ken- 
tucky in 1823. He graduated from West 
Point Military Academy in 1844, served in 
the United States infantry and was later as- 
signed to commissary duty with the rank of 
captain. He served several years at fron- 
tier posts, and was assistant professor in the 
military academy in 1846. He was with 
General Scott in the Mexican war, and en- 
gaged in all the battles from Vera Cruz to 
the capture of the Mexican capital. He 
was wounded at Cherubusco and brevetted 
first lieutenant, and at Molino del Rey was 
brevetted captain. After the close of the 



Mexican war he returned to West Point as 
assistant instructor, and was then assigned 
to commissary duty at New York. He re- 
signed in 1855 and became superintendent 
of construction of the Chicago custom house. 
He was made adjutant-genecal, with the 
rank of colonel, of Illinois militia, and was 
colonel of Illinois volunteers raised for the 
Utah expedition, but was not mustered into 
service. In i860 he removed to Kentucky, 
where he settled on a farm near Louisville 
and became inspector-general in command 
of the Kentucky Home Guards. At the 
opening of the Civil war he joined the Con- 
federate army, and was given command at 
Bowling Green, Kentucky, which he was 
compelled to abandon after the capture of 
Fort Henry. He then retired to Fort Don- 
elson, and was there captured with sixteen 
thousand men, and an immense store of pro- 
visions, by General Grant, in February, 
1862. He was held as a prisoner of war 
at Fort Warren until August of that year. 
He commanded a division of Hardee's corps 
in Bragg's Army of the Tennessee, and was 
afterward assigned to the third division and 
participated in the battles of Chickamauga, 
and Murfreesboro. He was with Kirby 
Smith when that general surrendered his 
army to General Canby in Ma)', 1865. He 
was an unsuccessful candidate for the vice- 
presidency on the Gold Democratic ticket 
with Senator John M. Palmer in 1896. 



SIMON KENTON, one of the famous pio- 
neers and scouts whose names fill the 
pages of the early history of our country, 
was born in Fauquier county, Virginia, 
April 3, 1755. In consequence of an affray, 
at the age of eighteen, young Kenton went 
to Kentucky, then the "Dark and Bloody 
Ground," and became associated with Dan- 
iel Boone and other pioneers of that region. 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHT. 



18& 



For a short time he acted as a scout and 
spy for Lord Dunmore, the British governor 
of Virginia, but afterward taking the side 
of the struggling colonists, participated in 
the war for independence west of the Alle- 
ghanies. In 17S4 he returned to Virginia, 
but did not remain there long, going back 
with his family to Kentucky. From 
that time until 1793 he participated in all 
the combats and battles of that time, and 
until "Mad Anthony" Wayne swept the 
Valley of the Ohio, and settled the suprem- 
acy of the whites in that region. Kenton 
laid claim to large tracts of land in the new 
country he had helped to open up, but 
through ignorance of law, and the growing 
value of the land, lost it all and was reduced 
to poverty. During the war with England 
in 18 12-15, Kenton took part in the inva- 
sion of Canada with the Kentucky troops 
and participated in the battle of the Thames. 
He finally had land granted him by the 
legislature of Kentucky, and received a pen- 
sion from the United States government. 
He died in Logan county, Ohio, April 29, 
1836. 

ELIHU BENJAMIN WASHBURNE, an 
American statesman of eminence, was 
born in Livermore, Maine, September 23, 
1816. He learned the trade of printer, but 
abandoned that calling at the age of eight- 
een and entered the Kent's Hill Academy at 
Reading, Maine, and then took up the study 
of law, reading in Hallowell, Boston, and at 
the Harvard Law School. He began prac- 
tice at Galena, Illinois, in 1840. He was 
elected to congress in 1852, and represented 
his district in that body continuously until 
March, 1869, and at the time of his retire- 
ment he had served a greater number of 
consecutive terms than any other member 
of the house. In 1873 President Grant ap- 



pointed him secretary of state, which posi- 
tion he resigned to accept that of minister 
to France. During the Franco-Prussian 
war, including the siege of Paris and the 
reign of the Commune, Mr. Washburne re- 
mained at his post, protecting the lives and 
property of his countrymen, as well as that 
of other foreign residents in Paris, while the 
ministers of all other powers abandoned 
their posts at a time when they were most 
needed. As far as possible he extended 
protection to unfortunate German residents, 
who were the particular objects of hatred of 
the populace, and his firmness and the suc- 
cess which attended his efforts won the ad- 
miration of all Europe. Mr. Washburne 
died at Chicago, Illinois, October 22, 1887. 



WILLIAM CRAMP, one of the most 
extensive shipbuilders of this coun- 
try, was born in Kensington, then a suburb, 
now a part of Philadelphia, in 1806. He 
received a thorough English education, and 
when he left school was associated with 
Samuel Grice, one of the most eminent 
naval architects of his day. In 1830, hav- 
ing mastered all the details of shipbuilding, 
Mr. Cramp engaged in business on his own 
account. By reason of ability and excel- 
lent work he prospered from the start, until 
now, in the hands of his sons, under the 
name of William Cramp & Sons' Ship and 
Engine Building Company, it has become the 
most complete shipbuilding plant and naval 
arsenal in the western hemisphere, and fully 
equal to any in the world. As Mr. Cramp's 
sons attained manhood they learned their 
father's profession, and were admitted to a 
partnership. In 1872 the firm was incor- 
porated under the title given above. Until 
i860 wood was used in building vessels, al- 
though pace was kept with all advances in 
the art of shipbuilding. At the opening of 



190 



COMPItX/UCM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



the war came an unexpected demand for 
war vessels, which they promptly met. The 
sea-going ironclad "New Ironsides" was 
built by them in 1862, followed by a num- 
ber of formidable ironclads and the cruiser 
"Chattanooga." They subsequently built 
several war vessels for the Russian and 
other governments which added to their 
reputation. When the American steamship 
line was established in 1S70, the Cramps 
were commissioned to build for it four first- 
class iron steamships, the " Pennsylvania," 
"Ohio," "Indiana" and " Illinois," which 
they turned out in rapid order, some of the 
finest specimens of the naval architecture of 
their day. William Cramp remained at the 
head of the great company he had founded 
until his death, which occurred January 6, 

1879. 

Charles H. Cramp, the successor of his 
father as head of the William Cramp & 
Sons' Ship and Engine Building Company, 
was born in Philadelphia May 9, 1S29, and 
received an excellent education in his native 
city, which he sedulously sought to sup- 
plement by close study until he became 
an authority on general subjects and the 
best naval architect on the western hemis- 
phere. Many of the best vessels of our 
new navy were built by this immense con- 
cern. 

WASHINGTON ALLSTON, probably 
the greatest American painter, was 
born in South Carolina in 1779. He was 
sent to school at the age of seven years at 
Newport, Rhode Island, where he met Ed- 
ward Malbone, two years his senior, and 
who later became a painter of note. The 
friendship that sprang up between them un- 
doubtedly influenced young Allston in the 
choice of a profession. He graduated from 
Harvard in 1800, and went to England the 



following year, after pursuing his studies for 
a year under his friend Malbone at his home 
in South Carolina. He became a student 
at the Royal Academy where the great 
American, Benjamin West, presided, and 
who became his intimate friend. Allston 
later went to Paris, and then to Italy, where 
four years were spent, mostly at Rome. In 
1S09 he returned to America, but soon after 
returned to London, having married in the 
meantime a sister of Dr. Channing. In 
a short time his first great work appeared, 
"The Dead Man Restored to Life by the 
Bones of Elisha," which took the British 
Association prize and firmly established his 
reputation. Other paintings followed in 
quick succession, the greatest among which 
were "Uriel in the Center of the Sun," 
"Saint Peter Liberated by the Angel," and 
"Jacob's Dream," supplemented by many 
smaller pieces. Hard work, and grief at the 
death of his wife began to tell upon his health, 
and he left London in 1818 for America. 
The same year he was elected an associate 
of the Royal Academy. During the next 
few years he painted "Jeremiah," "Witch 
ofEndor," and "Beatrice." In 1830 Alls- 
ton married a daughter of Judge Dana, and 
went to Cambridge, which was his home 
until his death. Here he produced the 
"Vision of the Bloody Hand," "Rosalie," 
and many less noted pieces, and had given 
one week of labor to his unfinished master- 
piece, "Belshazzar's Feast," when death 
ended his career July 9, 1843. 



JOHN ROACH, ship builder and manu- 
facturer, whose career was a marvel of. 
industrial labor, and who impressed his in- 
dividuality and genius upon the times in 
which he lived more, perhaps, than anv 
other manufacturer in America. He was 
born at Mitchelstown, County Cork, Ire- 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



191 



land, December 25, 1815, the son of a 
wealthy merchant. He attended school 
until he was thirteen, when his father be- 
came financially embarrassed and failed 
and shortly after died; John determined to 
come to America and carve out a fortune 
for himself. He landed in New York at the 
age of sixteen, and soon obtained employ- 
ment at the Howell Iron Works in New Jer- 
sey, at twenty-five cents a day. He soon 
made himself a place in the world, and at 
the end of three years had saved some 
twelve hundred dollars, which he lost by 
the failure of his employer, in whose hands 
it was left. Returning to New York he 
began to learn how to make castings for 
marine engines and ship work. Having 
again accumulated one thousand dollars, in 
company with three fellow workmen, he 
purchased a small foundry in New York, 
but soon became sole proprietor. At the 
end of four years he had saved thirty thou- 
sand dollars, besides enlarging his works. 
In 1856 his works were destroyed by a 
boiler explosion, and being unable to collect 
the insurance, was left, after paying his 
debts, without a dollar. However, his 
credit and reputation for integrity was good, 
and he built the Etna Iron Works, giving it 
capacity to construct larger marine engines 
than any previously built in this country. 
Here he turned out immense engines for 
the steam ram Dunderberg, for the war ves- 
sels Winooski and Neshaning, and other 
large vessels. To accommodate his increas- 
ing business, Mr. Roach, in 1869, pur- 
chased the Morgan Iron Works, one of the 
largest in New York, and shortly after sev- 
eral others. In 1871 he bought the Ches- 
ter ship yards, which he added to largely, 
erecting a rolling mill and blast furnace, and 
providing every facility for building a ship 
out of the ore and timber. This immense 



plant covered a large area, was valued at 
several millions of dollars, and was known 
as the Delaware River Iron Shipbuilding 
and Engine Works, of which Mr. Roach 
was the principal owner. He built a large 
percentage of the iron vessels now flying 
the American flag, the bulk of his business 
being for private parties. In 1875 he built 
the sectional dry docks at Pensacola. He, 
about this time, drew the attention of the 
government to the use of compound marine 
engines, and thus was the means of im- 
proving the speed and economy of the ves- 
sels of our new navy. In 1883 Mr. Roach 
commenced work on the three cruisers for 
the government, the "Chicago," "Boston" 
and "Atlanta," and the dispatch boat 
" Dolphin." For some cause the secretary 
of the navy refused to receive the latter and 
decided that Mr. Roach's contract would 
not hold. This embarrassed Mr. Roach, 
as a large amount of his capital was in- 
volved in these contracts, and for the pro- 
tection of bondsmen and creditors, July 18, 
1885, he made an assignment, but the. 
financial trouble broke down his strong con- 
stitution, and January 10, 1887, he died. 
His son, John B. Roach, succeeded to the 
shipbuilding interests, while Stephen W. 
Roach inherited the Morgan Iron Works at 
New York. 



JOHN SINGLETON COPLEY, one of 
the two great painters who laid the 
foundation of true American art, was born 
in Boston in 1737, one year earlier than his 
great contemporary, Benjamin West. His 
education was limited to the common schools 
of that time, and his training in art he ob- 
tained by his own observation and experi- 
ments solely. When he was about seven- 
teen years old he had mapped out his future, 
however, by choosing painting as his pro- 



192 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



fession. If he ever studied under any 
teacher in his early efforts, we have no au- 
thentic account of it, and tradition credits 
the young artist's wonderful success en- 
tirely to his own talent and untiring effort. 
It is almost incredible that at the age of 
twenty-three years his income from his 
works aggregated fifteen hundred dollars 
per annum, a very great sum in those days. 
In 1774 he went to Europe in search of ma- 
terial for study, which was so rare in his 
native land. After some time spent in Italy 
he finally took up his permanent residence 
in England. In 1783 he was made a mem- 
ber of the Royal Academy, and later his 
son had the high honor of becoming lord 
chancellor of England and Lord Eyndhurst. 
Many specimens of Copley's work are to 
be found in the Memorial Hall at Harvard 
and in the Boston Museum, as well as a few 
of the works upon which he modeled his 
style. Copley was essentially a portrait 
painter, though his historical paintings at- 
tained great celebrity, his masterpiece 
being his " Death of Major Pierson," though 
that distinction has by some been given to 
his "Death of Chatham." It is said that 
he never saw a good picture until he was 
thirty-five years old, yet his portraits prior 
to that period are regarded as rare speci- 
mens. He died in 181 5. 



HENRY B. PLANT, one of the greatest 
railroad men of the country, became 
famous as president of the Plant system of 
railway and steamer lines, and also the 
Southern & Texas Express Co. He was 
born in October, 1S19, at Branford, 
Connecticut, and entered the railroad serv- 
ice in 1844, serving as express messenger 
on the Hartford & New Haven Railroad until 
1853, during which time he had entire 
charge of the express* business of that road. 



He went south in 1853 and established ex- 
press lines on various southern railways, and 
in 1 86 1 organized the Southern Express 
Co., and became its president. In 1879 he 
purchased, with others, the Atlantic & Gulf 
Railroad of Georgia, and later reorganized 
the Savannah, Florida & Western Railroad, 
of which he became president. He pur- 
chased and rebuilt, in 1880, the Savannah 
& Charleston Railroad, now Charleston & 
Savannah. Not long after this he organ- 
ized the Plant Investment Co., to control 
these railroads and advance their interests 
generally, and later established a steamboat 
line on the St. John's river, in Florida. 
From 1853 until i860 he was general 
superintendent of the southern division of 
the Adams Express Co., and in 1867 be- 
came president of the Texas Express Co. 
The "Plant system" of railway, steamer 
and steamship lines is one of the greatest 
business corporations of the southern states. 



WADE HAMPTON, a noted Confeder- 
ate officer, was born at Columbia, 
South Carolina, in 18 18. He graduated 
from the South Carolina College, took an 
active part in politics, and was twice elected 
to the legislature of his state. In 1861 he 
joined the Confederate army, and command- 
ed the " Hampton Legion " at the first bat- 
tle of Bull Run, in July, 1861. He did 
meritorious service, was wounded, and pro- 
moted to brigadier-general. He command- 
ed a brigade at Seven Pines, in 1862, and 
was again wounded. He was engaged in 
the battle of Antietam in September of the 
same year, and participated in the raid into 
Pennsylvania in October. In 1863 he was 
with Lee at Gettysburg, where he was 
wounded for the third time. He was pro- 
moted to the rank of lieutenant-general, and 
commanded a troop of cavalry in Lee's 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHT. 



193 



army during 1864, and was in numerous en- 
gagements. In 1865 he was in South Car- 
olina, and commanded the cavalry rear 
guard of the Confederate army in its stub- 
born retreat before General Sherman on his 
advance toward Richmond. 

After the war Hampton took an active 
part in politics, and was a prominent figure 
at the Democratic national convention in 
1868, which nominated Seymour and Blair 
for president and vice-president. He was 
governor of South Carolina, and took his 
seat in the United States senate in 1879, 
where he became a conspicuous figure in 
national affairs. 



NIKOLA TESLA, one of the most cele- 
brated electricians America has known, 
was born in 1857, at Smiljau, Lika, Servia. 
He descended from an old and representative 
family of that country. His father was a 
a minister of the Greek church, of high rank, 
while his mother was a woman of remarka- 
ble skill in the construction of looms, churns 
and the machinery required in a rural home. 
Nikola received early education in the 
public schools of Gospich, when he was 
sent to the higher "Real Schule " at Karl- 
stadt, where, after a three years' course, 
he graduated in 1873. He devoted him- 
self to experiments in electricity and 
magnetism, to the chagrin of his father, 
who had destined him for the ministry, 
but giving way to the boy's evident genius 
he was allowed to continue his studies in 
the polytechnic school at Gratz. He in- 
herited a wonderful intuition which enabled 
him to see through the intricacies of ma- 
chinery, and despite his instructor's demon- 
stration that a dynamo could not be oper- 
ated without commutators or brushes, 
began experiments which finally resulted in 
his rotating field motors. After the study 



of languages at Prague and Buda-Pesth, he 
became associated with M. Puskas, who 
had introduced the telephone into Hungary. 
He invented several improvements, but 
being unable to reap the necessary benefit 
from them, he, in search of a wider field, 
went to Paris, where he found employment 
with one of the electric lighting companies 
as electrical engineer. Soon he set his face 
westward, and coming to the United States 
for a time found congenial employment wrth 
Thomas A. Edison. Finding it impossible, 
overshadowed as he was, to carry out his 
own ideas he left the Edison works to join 
a company formed to place his own inven- 
tions on the market. He perfected his 
rotary field principle, adapting it to circuits 
then in operation. It is said of him that 
some of his proved theories will change the 
entire electrical science. It would, in an 
article of this length, be impossible to ex- 
plain all that Tesla accomplished for the 
practical side of electrical engineering. 
His discoveries formed the basis of the at- 
tempt to utilize the water power of Niagara 
Falls. His work ranges far beyond the 
vast department of polyphase currents and 
high potential lighting and includes many 
inventions in arc lighting, transformers, 
pyro and thermo-magnetic motors, new 
forms of incandescent lamps, unipolar dyna- 
mos and many others. 



CHARLES B. LEWIS won fame as an 
American humorist under the name of 
"M. Quad." It is said he owes his 
celebrity originally to the fact that he was 
once mixed up in a boiler explosion on the 
Ohio river, and the impressions he received 
from the event he set up from his case when 
he was in the composing room of an ob- 
scure Michigan paper. His style possesses a 
peculiar quaintness, and there runs through 



194 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



it a vein of philosophy. Mr. Lewis was 
born in 1844, near a town called Liverpool, 
Ohio. He was, however, raised in Lansing, 
Michigan, where he spent a year in an agri- 
cultural college, going from there to the 
composing room of the "Lansing Demo- 
crat." At the outbreak of the war he en- 
listed in the service, remained during the 
entire war, and then returned to Lansing. 
The explosion of the boiler that " blew him 
into fame," took place two years later, while 
he was on his way south. When he re- 
covered physically, he brought suit for dam- 
ages against the steamboat company, which 
he gained, and was awarded a verdict of 
twelve thousand dollars for injuries re- 
ceived. It was while he was employed by 
the "Jacksonian" of Pontiac, Mich., that he 
set up his account of how he felt while being 
blown up. He says that he signed it "M 
Quad," because "a bourgeoise em quad is 
useless except in its own line — it won't 
justify with any other type." Soon after, 
because of the celebrity he attained by this 
screed, Mr. Lewis secured a place on the 
staff of the "Detroit Free Press," and made 
for that paper a wide reputation. His 
sketches of the "Lime Kiln Club" and 
" Brudder Gardner " are perhaps the best 
known of his humorous writings. 



HIRAM S. MAXIM, the famous inventor. 
was born in Sangersville, Maine, 
February 5, 1840, the son of Isaac W. 
and Harriet B. Maxim. The town of his 
birth was but a small place, in the 
woods, on the confines of civilization, 
and the family endured many hardships. 
They were without means and entirely 
dependent on themselves to make out of 
raw materials all they needed. The mother 
was an expert spinner, weaver, dyer and 
seamstress and the father a trapper, tanner, 



miller, blacksmith, carpenter, mason and 
farmer. Amid such surroundings young 
Maxim gave early promise of remarkable 
aptitude. With the universal Yankee jack- 
knife the products of his skill excited the 
wonder and interest of the locality. His 
parents did not encourage his latent genius 
but apprenticed him to a coach builder. 
Four years he labored at this uncongenial 
trade but at the end of that time he forsook 
it and entered a machine shop at Fitchburg, 
Massachusetts. Soon mastering the details 
of that business and that of mechanical 
drawing, he went to Boston as the foreman 
of the philosophical instrument manufactory. 
From thence he went to New York and with 
the Novelty Iron Works Shipbuilding Co. 
he gained experience in those trades. His 
inventions up to this time consisted of 
improvements in steam engines, and an 
automatic gas machine, which came into 
general use. In 1877 he turned his attention 
to electricity, and in 1878 produced an 
incandescent lamp, that would burn 1,000 
hours. He was the first to design a process 
for flashing electric carbons, and the first 
to "standardize" carbons for electric light- 
ing. In 1880 he visited Europe and exhibit- 
ing, at the Paris Exposition of 1881, a self- 
regulating machine, was decorated with the 
Legion of Honor. In 1883 he returned to 
London as the European representative of the 
United States Electric Light Co. An incident 
of his boyhood, in which the recoil of a rifle 
was noticed by him, and the apparent loss 
of power shown, in 188 1-2 prompted the 
invention of a gun which utilizes the recoil to 
automatically load and fire seven hundred 
and seventy shots per minute. The Maxim- 
Nordenfelt Gun Co., with a capital of nine 
million dollars, grew from this. In 1883 he 
patented his electric training gear for large 
guns. And later turned his attention to fly- 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



195 



ing machines, which he claimed were not an 
impossibility. Fie took out over one hundred 
patents for smokeless gunpowder, and for pe- 
troleum and other motors and autocycles. 



JOHN DAVISON ROCKEFELLER, 
J one of America's very greatest financiers 
and philanthropists, was born in Richford, 
Tioga county, New York, July 8, 1839. He 
received a common-school education in his 
native place, and in 1853, when his parents 
removed to Cleveland, Ohio, he entered the 
high school of that city. After a two-years' 
course of diligent work, he entered the com- 
mission and forwarding house of Hewitt & 
Tuttle, of Cleveland, remaining with the 
firm some years, and then began business 
for himself, forming a partnership with 
Morris B. Clark. Mr. Rockefeller was then 
but nineteen years of age, and during the 
year i860, in connection with others, they 
started the oil refining business, under the 
firm name of Andrews, Clark & Co. Mr. 
Rockefeller and Mr. Andrews purchased the 
interest of their associates, and, after taking 
William Rockefeller into the firm, established 
offices in Cleveland under the name of 
William Rockefeller & Co. Shortly after 
this the house of Rockefeller & Co. was es- 
tablished in New York for the purpose of 
finding a market for their products,. and two 
years later all the refining companies were 
consolidated under the firm name of Rocke- 
feller, Andrews & Flagler. This firm was 
succeeded in 1870 by the Standard Oil 
Company of Ohio, said to be the most 
gigantic business corporation of modern 
times. John D. Rockefeller's fortune has 
been variously estimated at from one hun- 
dred million to two hundred million dollars. 
Mr. Rockefeller's philanthropy mani- 
fested itself principally through the American 
Baptist Educational Society. He donated 



the building for the Spelman Institute at 
Atlanta, Georgia, a school for the instruction 
of negroes. His other gifts were to the 
University of Rochester, Cook Academy, 
Peddie Institute, and Vassar College, be- 
sides smaller gifts to many institutions 
throughout the country. His princely do- 
nations, however, were to the University of 
Chicago. His first gift to this institution 
was a conditional offer of six hundred thou- 
sand dollars in 1889, and when this amount 
was paid he added one million more. Dur- 
ing 1892 he made it two gifts of one million 
each, and all told, his donations to this one 
institution aggregated between seven and 
eight millions of dollars. 



JOHN M. PALMER.— For over a third 
of a century this gentleman occupied a 
prominent place in the political world, both 
in the state of Illinois and on the broader 
platform of national issues. 

Mr. Palmer was born at Eagle Creek, 
Scott count}-, Kentucky, September 13, 
1817. The family subsequently removed 
to Christian county, in the same state, where 
he acquired a common-school education, and 
made his home until 1831. His father was 
opposed to slavery, and in the latter year 
removed to Illinois and settled near Alton. 
In 1834 John entered Alton College, or- 
ganized on the manual-labor plan, but his 
funds failing, abandoned it and entered a 
cooper shop. He subsequently was en- 
gaged in peddling, and teaching a district 
school near Canton. In 1838 he began the 
study of law, and the following year re- 
moved to Carlinville, where, in December of 
that year, he was admitted to the bar. He 
was shortly after defeated for county clerk. 
In 1843 he was elected probate judge. In 
the constitutional convention of 1847, Mr. 
Palmer was a delegate, and from 1849 to 



190 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRArilT. 



1 85 1 he was county judge. In 1852 he be- 
came a member of the state senate, but not 
being with his party on the slavery question 
he resigned that office in 1854. In 1856 
Mr. Palmer was chairman of the first Re- 
publican state convention held in Illinois, 
and the same year was a delegate to the 
national convention. In i860 he was an 
elector on the Lincoln ticket, and on the 
breaking out of the war entered the service 
as colonel of the Fourteenth Illinois Infan- 
try, but was shortly after brevetted brigadier- 
general. In August, 1862, he organized 
the One Hundred and Twenty-second Illi- 
nois Infantry, but in September he was 
placed in command of the first division of 
the Army of the Mississippi, afterward was 
promoted to the rank of major-general. In 
1865 lie was assigned to the military ad- 
ministration in Kentucky. In 1867 General 
Palmer was elected governor of Illinois and 
s°rved four years. In 1872 he went with 
the Liberal Republicans, who supported 
Horace Greeley, after which time he was 
identified with the Democratic party. In 
1890 he was elected United States senator 
from Illinois, and served as such for six 
years. In 1896, on the adoption of the sil- 
ver plank in the platform of the Democratic 
party, General Palmer consented to lead, 
as presidential candidate, the National Dem- 
oc vats, or Gold Democracy. 



WILLIAM H. BEARD, the humorist 
among American painters, was born 
at Painesville, Ohio, in 1821. His father, 
James H. Beard, was also a painter of na- 
tional reputation. William H. Beard be- 
gan his career as a traveling portrait 
painter. He pursued his studies in New 
York, and later removed to Buffalo, where 
he achieved reputation. He then went to 



Italy and after a short stay returned to New 
York and opened a studio. One of his 
earliest paintings was a small picture called 
"Cat and Kittens," which was placed in 
the National Academy onexhibition. Among 
his best productions are "Raining Cats and 
Dogs," "The Dance of Silenus," "Bears 
on a Bender," "Bulls and Bears," " Whoo!" 
" Grimalkin's Dream," " Little Red Riding 
Hood," "The Guardian of the Flag." His 
animal pictures convey the most ludicrous 
and satirical ideas, and the intelligent, 
human expression in their faces is most 
comical. Some artists and critics have re- 
fused to give Mr. Beard a place among the 
first circles in art, solely on account of the 
class of subjects he has chosen. 



WW. CORCORAN, the noted philan- 
thropist, was born at Georgetown, 
District of Columbia. December 27, 1798. 
At the age of twenty-five he entered the 
banking business in Washington, and in 
time became very wealthy. He was 
noted for his magnificent donations to char- 
ity. Oak Hill cemetery was donated to 
Georgetown in 1S47, and ten years later the 
Corcoran Art Gallery, Temple of Art, was 
presented to the city of Washington. The 
uncompleted building was utilized by the 
government as quartermaster's headquar- 
ters during the war. The building was 
completed after the war at a cost of a mil- 
lion and a half dollars, all the gift of Mr. 
Corcoran. The Louise Home for Women 
is another noble charity to his credit. Its 
object is the care of women of gentle breed- 
ing who in declining years are without 
means of support. In addition to this he 
gave liberally to many worthy institutions 
of learning and charity. He died at Wash- 
ington February 24, 1S88. 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHV. 



197 



ALBERT BIERSTADT, the noted paint- 
er of American landscape, was born in 
Dusseldorf, Germany, in 1829, and was 
brought to America by his parents at the 
age of two years. He received his early 
education here, but returned to Dusseldorf 
to study painting, and also went to Rome. 
On his return to America he accompanied 
Lander's expedition across the continent, in 
1858, and soon after produced his most 
popular work, "The Rocky Mountains — 
Lander's Peak. " Its boldness and grandeur 
were so unusual that it made him famous. 
The picture sold for twenty-five thousand 
dollars. In 1S67 Mr. Bierstadt went to 
Europe, with a government commission, 
and gathered materials for his great historic- 
al work. "Discovery of the North River 
by Hendrik Hudson." Others of his great 
works were "Storm in the Rocky Mount- 
ains," "Valley of the Yosemite," "North 
Fork of the Platte," "Diamond Pool," 
"Mount Hood," "Mount Rosalie," and 
"The Sierra Nevada Mountains." His 
" Estes Park ' sold for fifteen thousand 
dollars, and "Mount Rosalie" brought 
thirty-five thousand dollars. His smaller 
Rocky mountain scenes, however, are vast- 
ly superior to his 'larger works in execution 
and coloring:. 



ADDISON CAMMACK, a famous mill- 
ionaire Wall street speculator, was 
born in Kentucky. When sixteen years old 
he ran away from home and went to New 
Orleans, where he went to work in a ship- 
ping house. He outlived and outworked 
all the partners, and became the head of the 
firm before the opening of the war. At 
that time he fitted out small vessels and en- 
gaged in running the blockade of southern 
ports and carrying ammunition, merchan- 
dise, etc., to the southern peopie. This 



made him a fortune. At the close of the 
war he quit business and went to New 
York. For two years he did not enter any 
active business, but seemed to be simply an 
on-looker in the great speculative center of 
America. He was observing keenly the 
methods and financial machinery, however, 
and when, in 1867, he formed a partnership 
with the popular Charles J. Osborne, the 
firm began to prosper. He never had an 
office on the street, but wandered into the 
various brokers' offices and placed his orders 
as he saw fit. In 1S73 he dissolved his 
partnership with Osborne and operated 
alone. He joined a band of speculative 
conspirators known as the "Twenty-third 
party," and was the ruling spirit in that or- 
ganization for the control of the stock mar- 
ket. He was always on the ' ' bear " side and 
the only serious obstacle he ever encoun- 
tered was the persistent boom in industrial 
stocks, particularly sugar, engineered by 
James R. Keane. Mr. Cammack fought 
Keane for two years, and during the time is 
said to have lost no less than two million 
dollars before he abandoned the fie;ht. 



WALT. WHITMAN.— Foremost among 
the lesser poets of the latter part of the 
nineteenth century, the gentleman whose 
name adorns the head of this article takes 
a conspicuous place. 

Whitman was born at West Hills, Long 
Island, New York, May 13, 1809. In the 
schools of Brooklyn he laid the foundation 
of his education, and early in life learned the 
printer's trade. For a time he taught coun- 
try schools in his native state. In 1846-7 
he was editor of the " Brooklyn Eagle, " 
but in 1848-9 was on the editorial staff of 
the "Crescent," of New Orleans. He 
made an extended tour throughout the 
United States and Canada, and returned to 



j98 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



Brooklyn, where, in 1850, he published the 
"Freeman. " For some years succeeding 
'.his he was engaged as carpenter and builder. 
During the Civil war, Whitman acted as 
a volunteer nurse in the hospitals at 
Washington and vicinity and from the close 
of hostilities until 1873 he was employed 
in various clerkships in the government 
offices in the nation's capital. In the latter 
year he was stricken with paralysis as a 
result of his labors in the hospital, it is 
said, and being partially disabled lived for 
many years at Camden, New Jersey. 

The first edition of the work which was 
to bring him fame, "Leaves of Grass," was 
published in 1855 and was but a small 
volume of about ninety-four pages. Seven 
or eight editions of "Leaves of Grass" have 
been issued, each enlarged and enriched with 
new poems. "Drum Taps," at first a 
separate publication, has been incorporated 
with the others. This volume and one 
prose writing entitled " Specimen Days and 
Collect," constituted his whole work. 

Walt. Whitman died at Camden, New 
Jersey, March 26, 1892. 



HENRY DUPONT, who became cele- 
brated as America's greatest manufact- 
urer of gunpowder, was a native of Dela- 
ware, born August 8, 18 12. He received 
his education in its higher branches at the 
United States Military Academy at West 
Point, from which he graduated and entered 
the army as second lieutenant of artillery in 
1833. In 1834 he resigned and became 
proprietor of the extensive gunpowder 
manufacturing plant that bears his name, 
near Wilmington, Delaware. His large 
business interests interfered with his tak- 
ing any active participation in political 
life, although for many years he served 
as adjutant-general of his native state, and 



during the war as major-general command- 
ing the Home Guards. He died August 8, 
1889. His son, Henry A. Dupont, also was 
a native of Delaware, and was born July 30, 
1838. After graduating from West Point 
in 1 86 1, he entered the army as second 
lieutenant of engineers. Shortly after he 
was transferred to the Fifth Artillery as first 
lieutenant. He was promoted to the rank 
of captain in 1S64, serving in camp and 
garrison most of the time. He was in com- 
mand of a battery in the campaign of 
1863-4. Aschief of artillery of the army of 
West Virginia, he figured until the close of 
the war, being in the battles of Opequan, 
Fisher's Hill and Cedar Creek, besides 
many minor engagements. He afterward 
acted as instructor in the artillery school at 
Fortress Monroe, and on special duty at 
West Point. He resigned from the army 
March 1, 1875. 



WILLIAM DEERING, one of the fa- 
mous manufacturers of America, and 
also a philanthropist and patron of educa- 
tion, was born in Maine in 1826. His an- 
cestors were English, having settled in New- 
England in 1634. Early in life it was Will - 
iam's intention to become a physician, and 
after completing his common-school educa- 
tion, when about eighteen years of age, he 
began an apprenticeship with a physician. 
A short time later, however, at the request 
of his father, he took charge of his father's 
business interests, which included a woolen 
mill, retail store and grist mill, after which 
he became agent for a dry goods commission 
house in Portland, where he was married. 
Later he became partner in the firm, and 
removed to New York. The business pros- 
pered, and after a number of years, on ac- 
count of fniling health, Mr. Deering sold hi-; 
interest to his partner, a Mr. Milner. The 






COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



199 



business has since made Mr. Milner a mill- 
ionaire many times over. A few years 
later Mr. Deering located in Chicago. His 
beginning in the manufacture of reapers, 
which has since made his name famous, 
was somewhat of an accident. He had 
loaned money to a man in that business, 
and in 1878 was compelled to buy out the 
business to protect his interests. The busi- 
ness developed rapidly and grew to immense 
proportions. The factories now cover sixty- 
two acres of ground and employ many thou- 
sands of men. 



John McAllister schofield, an 
American general, was born in Chautau- 
qua county, New York, September 29, 1 83 1 . 
Hegraduated at West Point in 1S53, and 
was for five years assistant professor of nat- 
ural philosophy in that institution. In 1861 
he entered the volunteer service as major of 
the First Missouri Volunteers, and was ap- 
pointed chief of staff by General Lyon, under 
whom he fought at the battle of Wilson's 
Creek. In November, i86r, he was ap- 
pointed brigadier-general of volunteers, and 
was placed in command of. the Missouri 
militia until November, 1862, and of the 
army of the frontier from that time until 
1863. In 1862 he was made major-general 
of volunteers, and was placed in command of 
the Department of the Missouri, and in 1864 
of the Department of the Ohio. During the 
campaign through Georgia General Scho- 
field was in command of the Twenty-third 
Army Corps, and was engaged in most of the 
fighting of that famous campaign. Novem- 
ber 30, 1864, he defeated Hood's army at 
Franklin, Tennessee, and then joined Gen- 
eral Thomas at Nashville. He took part in 
the battle of Nashville, where Hood's army 
was destroyed. In January, 1865, he led 
his corps into North Carolina, captured 



Wilmington, fought the battle of Kingston, 
and joined General Sherman at Goldsboro 
March 22, 1865. He executed the details 
of the capitulation of General Johnston to 
Sherman, which practically closed the war. 
In June, 186S, General Schofield suc- 
ceeded Edwin M. Stanton as secretary of 
war, but was the next year appointed major- 
general of the United States army, and order- 
ed to the Department of the Missouri. From 
1870 to 1876 he was in command of the De- 
partment of the Pacific; from 1876 to 1881 
superintendent of the West Point Military 
Academy; in 1883 he was in charge of the 
Department of the Missouri, and in 1886 of 
the division of the Atlantic. In 1888 he 
became general-in-chief of the United States 
army, and in February, 1895, was appoint- 
ed lieutenant-general by President Cleve- 
land, that rank having been revived by con- 
gress. In September, 1895, he was retired 
from active service. 



LEWIS WALLACE, an American gen- 
eral and famous author, was born in 
Brookville, Indiana, April 10, 1827. He 
served in the Mexican war as first lieutenant 
of a company of Indiana Volunteers. After 
his return from Mexico he was admitted to 
the bar, and practiced law in Covington and 
Crawfordsville, Indiana, until 1861. At the 
opening of the war he was appointed ad- 
jutant-general of Indiana, and soon after be- 
came colonel of the Eleventh Indiana Vol- 
unteers. He defeated a force of Confeder- 
ates at Romney, West Virginia, and was 
made brigadier-general in September, 1861. 
At the capture of Fort Donelson in 1862 he 
commanded a division, and was engaged in 
the second day's fight at Shiloh. In 1863 
his defenses about Cincinnati saved that city 
from capture by Kirby Smith. At Monoc- 
acy in July, 1864, he was defeated, but 



L'l >( I 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



his resistance delayed the advance of Gen- 
eral Early and thus saved Washington from 
capture. 

General Wallace was a member of the 
court that tried the assassins of President 
Lincoln, and also of that before whom Cap- 
tain Henry Wirtz, who had charge of the 
Andersonville prison, was tried. In 1S81 
General Wallace was sent as minister to 
Turkey. When not in official service he 
devoted much of his time to literature. 
Among his better known works are his 
"Fair God," "Ben Hur," "Prince of 
India," and a " Life of Benjamin Harrison." 



istration. The questions for adjustment at 
that time between the two governments 
were the Behring Sea controversy and the 
Venezuelan boundary question. He was 
very popular in England because of his 
tariff views, and because of his criticism of 
the protective policy of the United States 
in his public speeches delivered in London. 
Edinburgh and other places, he received, in 
March, i S96, a vote of censure in the lower 
house of congress. 



THOMAS FRANCIS BAYARD, an Ameri- 
can statesman and diplomat, was born 
at Wilmington, Delaware, October 29, 1828. 
He obtained his education at an Episcopal 
academy at Flushing, Long Island, and 
after a short service in a mercantile house in 
New York, he returned to Wilmington and j 
entered his father's law office to prepare 
himself for the practice of that profession. 
He was admitted to the bar in 1851. He 
was appointed to the office of United States 
district attorney for the state of Delaware, 
serving one year. In 1 S69 he was elected to 
the United States senate, and continuously 
represented his state in that body until 1885, 
and in 1881, when Chester A. Arthur entered 
the presidential chair, Mr. Bayard was 
chosen president pro tempore of the senate. 
He had also served on the famous electoral 
commission that decided the Hayes-Tilden 
contest in 1876-7. In 1885 President Cleve- 
land appointed Mr. Bayard secretary of 
state. At the beginning of Cleveland's sec- 
ond term, in 1893, Mr. Bayard was selected 
for the post of ambassador at the court of 
St. James, London, and was the first to hold 
that rank in American diplomacy, serving 
until the beginning of the McKinley admin- 



TOHN WORK GARRETT, for so many 
<J years at the head of the great Baltimore 
& Ohio railroad system, was born in Balti- 
more, Maryland, July 31, 1820. His father, 
Robert Garrett, an enterprising merchant, 
had amassed a large fortune from a small 
beginning. The son entered Lafayette Col- 
lege in 1834, but left the following year and 
entered his father's counting room, and in 
1839 became a partner. John \V. Gar- 
rett took a great interest in the develop- 
ment of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad. Hi- 
was elected one of the directors in 1857, 
and was its president from 1858 until his 
death. When he took charge of the road 
it was in an embarrassed condition, but 
within a year, for the first time in its exist- 
ence, it paid a dividend, the increase in its 
net gains being $725,385. After the war, 
during which the road suffered much damage 
from the Confederates, numerous branches 
and connecting roads were built or acquired, 
until it reached colossal proportions. Mr. 
Garrett was also active in securing a regular 
line of steamers between Baltimore and 
Bremen, and between the same port and 
Liverpool. He was one of the most active 
trustees of Johns Hopkins University, and a 
liberal contributor to the Young Men's 
Christian Association of Baltimore. He 
died September 26, 1884. 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHT. 



201 



Robert Garrett, the son of John W. 
Garrett, was born in Baltimore April 9, 
1847, and graduated from Princeton in 1867. 
He received a business education in the 
banking house of his father, and in 1871 
became president of the Valley Railroad of 
Virginia. He was made third vice-presi- 
dent of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad in 
1879, and first vice-president in 1S81. He 
succeeded his father as president in 1884. 
Robert Garrett died July 29, 1896. 



CARL SCHURZ, a noted German-Ameri- 
canstatesman, was born in Liblar, Prus- 
sia, March 2, 1829. He studied at the Uni- 
versity of Bonn, and in 1849 was engaged in 
an attempt to excite an insurrection at that 
place. After the surrender of Rastadt by 
the revolutionists, in the defense of which 
Schurz took part, he decided to emigrate to 
America. He resided in Philadelphia three 
years, and then settled in Watertown, Wis- 
consin, and in 1859 removed to Milwaukee, 
where he practiced law. On the organiza- 
tion of the Republican party he became a 
leader of the German element and entered 
the campaign for Lincoln in i860. He was 
appointed minister to Spain in 1861, but re- 
signed in December of that year to enter 
the army. He was appointed brigadier- 
general in 1862, and participated in the 
second battle of Bull Run, and also at 
Chancellorsville. At Gettysburg he had 
temporary command of the Eleventh Army 
Corps, and also took part in the battle of 
Chattanooga. 

After the war he located at St. Louis, 
and in 1869 was elected United States sena- 
tor from Missouri. He supported Horace 
Greeley for the presidency in 1872, and in 
the campaign of 1876, having removed to 
New York, he supported Hayes and the Re- 
publican ticket, and was appointed secre- 



tary of the interior in 1877. In 1881 he 
became editor of the "New York Evening 
Post," and in 1884 was prominent in his 
opposition to James G. Blaine, and became 
a leader of the "Mugwumps," thus assist- 
ing in the election of Cleveland. In the 
presidential campaign of 1896 his forcible 
speeches in the interest of sound money 
wielded an immense influence. Mr. Schurz 
wrote a "Life of Henry Clay," said to be 
the best biography ever published of that 
eminent statesman. 



GEORGE F. EDMUNDS, an American 
statesman of national reputation, was 
born in Richmond, Vermont, February 1, 
1828. His education was obtained in the 
public schools and from the instructions of 
a private tutor. He was admitted to the 
bar, practiced law, and served in the state 
legislature from 1854 to 1859, during three 
years of that time being speaker of the lower 
house. He was elected to the state senate 
and acted as president pro tempore of that 
body in 1861 and 1862. He became promi- 
nent for his activity in the impeachment 
proceedings against President Johnson, and 
was appointed to the United States senate 
to fill out the unexpired term of Solomon 
Foot, entering that body in 1866. He was 
re-elected to the senate four times, and 
served on the electoral commission in 1877. 
He became president pro tempore of the 
senate after the death of President Garfield, 
and was the author of the bill which put an 
end to the practice of polygamy in the ter- 
ritory of Utah. In November, 1891, owing 
to impaired health, he retired from the sen- 
ate and again resumed the practice of law. 



LUCIUS Q. C. LAMAR, a prominent 
political leader, statesman and jurist, 
was born in Putnam county, Georgia, Sep- 



202 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



temberij, 1825. He graduated from Emory 
College in 1845, studied law at Macon under 
Hon. A. H. Chappell, and was admitted to 
the bar in 1847. He moved to Oxford, 
Mississippi, in 1849, and was elected to a 
professorship in the State University. He 
resigned the next year and returned to Cov- 
ington, Georgia, and resumed the practice 
of law. In 1853 he was elected to the 
Georgia Legislature, and in 1854 he removed 
to his plantation in Lafayette county, Mis- 
sissippi, and was elected to represent his 
district in the thirty-fifth and thirty-sixth 
congresses. He resigned in i860, and was 
sent as a delegate to the secession conven- 
tion of the state. He entered the Confed- 
erate service in 1861 as lieutenant-colonel 
of the Nineteenth Regiment, and was soon 
after made colonel. In 1863 President 
Davis appointed him to an important diplo- 
matic mission to Russia. In 1866 he was 
elected professor of political economy and 
social science in the State University, and 
was soon afterward transferred to the pro- 
fessorship of the law department. He rep- 
resented his district in the forty-third and 
forty-fourth congresses, and was elected 
United States senator from Mississippi in 
1877, and re-elected in 1882. In 1885, be- 
fore the expiration of his term, he was 
appointed by President Cleveland as secre- 
tary of the interior, which position he held 
until his appointment as associate justice of 
the United States supreme court, in 1888, 
in which capacity he served until his death, 
January 23, 1894. 



BENJAMIN PENHALLOW SHILLA- 
BER won fame in the world of 
humorists under the name of "Mrs. Parting- 
ton." He was born in 1841 at Portsmouth, 
New Hampshire, and started out in life as a 
printer. Mr. Shillaber went to Dover, 



where he secured employment in a printing 
office, and from there he went to Demerara, 
Guiana, where he was employed as a com- 
positor in 1835-37. In 1840 he became 
connected with the "Boston Post," and 
acquired quite a reputation as a humorist 
by his "Sayings of Mrs. Partington." He 
remained as editor of the paper until 1850, 
when he printed and edited a paper of his 
own called the "Pathfinder," which he con- 
tinued until 1852. Mr. Shillaber be- 
came editor and proprietor of the "Carpet 
Bag," which he conducted during 1850-52, 
and then returned to the "Boston Post," 
with which he was connected until 1856. 
During the same time he was one of the 
editors of the "Saturday Evening Gazette," 
and continued in this line after he severed 
his connection with the "Post," for ten 
years. After 1866 Mr. Shillaber wrote for 
various newspapers and periodicals, and 
during his life published the following 
books: ' 'Rhymes with Reason and Without, " 
"Poems," "Life and Sayings of Mrs. Part- 
ington," "Knitting Work," and others. 
His death occurred at Chelsea, Massachu- 
setts, November 25, 1890. 



EASTMAN JOHNSON stands first among 
painters of American country life. He 
was born in Lovell, Maine, in 1824, and be- 
gan his work in drawing at the age of eight- 
een years. His first works were portraits, 
and, as he took up his residence in Wash- 
ington, the most famous men of the nation 
were his subjects. In 1846 he went to Bos- 
ton, and there made crayon portraits of 
Longfellow, Emerson, Sumner, Hawthorne 
and other noted men. In 1849 he went to 
Europe. He studied at Dusseldorf, Ger- 
many; spent a year at the Royal Academy, 
and thence to The Hague, where he spent 
four years, producing there his first pictures 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



203 



of consequence, "The Card-Players " and 
"The Savoyard." He then went to Paris, 
but was called home, after an absence from 
America of six years. He lived some time 
in Washington, and then spent two years 
among the Indians of Lake Superior. In 
1858 he produced his famous picture, "The 
Old Kentucky Home." He took up his 
permanent residence at New York at that 
time. His "Sunday Morning in Virginia" 
is a work of equal merit. He was espe- 
cially successful in coloring, a master of 
drawing, and the expression conveys with 
precision the thought of the artist. His 
portrayal of family life and child life is un- 
equalled. Among his other great works are 
"The Confab," "Crossing a Stream,' 
"Chimney Sweep," "Old Stage Coach," 
" The New Bonnet, " " The Drummer Boy," 
" Childhood of Lincoln," and a great vari- 
ety of equally familiar subjects. 



PIERCE GUSTAVE TOUTANT BEAU- 
REGARD, one of the most distin- 
guished generals in the Confederate army, 
was born near New Orleans, Louisiana, 
May 28, 181 8. He graduated from West 
Point Military Academy in 1838, and was 
made second lieutenant of engineers. He 
was with General Scott in Mexico, and dis- 
tinguished himself at Vera Cruz, Cerro 
Gordo, and the battles near the City of 
Mexico, for which he was twice brevetted. 
After the Mexican war closed he was placed 
in charge of defenses about New Orleans, 
and in i860 was appointed superintendent 
of the United States Military Academy at 
West Point. He held this position but a 
few months, when he resigned February 20, 
1 861, and accepted a commission of briga- 
dier-general in the Confederate army. He 
directed the attack on Fort Sumter, the 

first engagement of the Civil war. He was 
12 



in command of the Confederates at the first 
battle of Bull Run, and for this victory was 
made general. In 1862 he was placed in 
command of the Army of the Mississippi, 
and planned the attack upon General Grant 
at Shiloh, and upon the death of General 
Johnston he took command of the army 
and was only defeated by the timely arrival 
of General Buell with reinforcements. He 
commanded at Charleston and successfully 
defended that city'against the combined at- 
tack by land and sea in 1863. In 1864 he 
was in command in Virginia, defeating Gen- 
eral Butler, and resisting Grant's attack 
upon Petersburg until reinforced from Rich- 
mond. During the long siege which fol- 
lowed he was sent to check General Sher- 
man's march to the sea, and was with Gen- 
eral Joseph E. Johnston when that general 
surrendered in 1865. After the close of the 
war he was largely interested in railroad 
management. In 1866 he was offered chief 
command of the Army of Roumania, and in 
1869, that of the Army of Egypt. He de- 
clined these offers. His death occurred 
February 20, 1893. 



HENRY GEORGE, one of America's 
most celebrated political economists, 
was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 
September 2, 1839. He received a common- 
school education and entered the high 
school in 1853, and then went into a mer- 
cantile office. He made several voyages on 
the sea, and settled in California in 1858. 
He then worked at the printer's trade for a 
number of years, which he left to follow the 
editorial profession. He edited in succession 
several daily newspapers, and attracted at- 
tention by a number of strong essays and 
speeches on political and social questions. 
In 1 87 1 he edited a pamphlet, entitled ' ' Oui 
Land and Policy," in which he outlined a 



204 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHT. 



theory, which has since made him so widely 
known. This was developed in " Progress 
and Poverty," a book which soon attained a 
large circulation on both sides of the Atlan- 
tic, which has been extensively translated. 
In 1880 Mr. George located in New York, 
where he made his home, though he fre- 
quently addressed audiences in Great Britain, 
Ireland, Australia, and throughout the 
United States. In 1886 he was nominated 
by the labor organizations for mayor of New 
York, and made a campaign notable for its 
development of unexpected power. In 1887 he 
was candidate of the Union Labor party for 
secretary of state of New York. These cam- 
paigns served to formulate the idea of a single 
tax and popularize the Australian ballot sys- 
tem. Mr. George became a free trader in 
1888, and in 1892 supported the election of 
Grover Cleveland. His political and eco- 
nomic ideas, known as the "single tax," 
have a large and growing support, but are 
not confined to this country alone. He 
wrote numerous miscellaneous articles in 
support of his principles, and also published: 
"The Land Question," " Social Problems," 
"Protection or Free Trade," "The Condi- 
tion of Labor, an Open Letter to Pope Leo 
XIII.," and " Perplexed Philosopher." 



THOMAS ALEXANDER SCOTT.— This 
name is indissolubly connected with 
the history and development of the railway 
systems of the United States. Mr. Scott 
was born December 28, 1823, at London, 
Franklin county, Pennsylvania. He was first 
regularly employed by Major James Patton, 
the collector of tolls on the state road be- 
tween Philadelphia and Columbia, Penn- 
sylvania. He entered into the employ of 
the Pennsylvania Railroad Company in 1850, 
and went through all the different branches 
of work until he had mastered all the details 



of the office work, and in 1858 he was ap- 
pointed general superintendent. Mr. Scott 
was the next year chosen vice-president of 
the road. This position at once brought 
him before the public, and the enterprise 
and ability displayed by him in its manage- 
ment marked him as a leader among the 
railroad men of the country. At the out- 
break of the rebellion in 1861, Mr. Scott 
was selected by Governor Curtin as a mem- 
ber of his staff, and placed in charge of the 
equipment and forwarding of the state troops 
to the seat of war. On April 27, 1861, the 
secretary of war desired to establish a new 
line of road between the national capital 
and Philadelphia, for the more expeditious 
transportation of troops. He called upon 
Mr. Scott to direct this work, and the road 
by the way of Annapolis and Perryville was 
completed in a marvelously short space of 
time. On May 3, 1861, he was commis- 
sioned colonel of volunteers, and on the 23d 
of the same month the government railroads 
and telegraph lines were placed in his charge. 
Mr. Scott was the first assistant secretary 
of war ever appointed, and he took charge 
of this new post August 1, 1861. In Janu- 
ary, 1862, he was directed to organize 
transportation in the northwest, and in 
March he performed the same service on 
the western rivers. He resigned June 1, 
1862, and resumed his direction of affairs on 
the Pennsylvania Railroad. Colonel Scott 
directed the policy that secured to his road 
the control of the western roads, and be- 
came the president of the new company to 
operate these lines in 1871. For one year, 
from March, 1 871, he was president of the 
Union Pacific Railroad, and in 1874 he suc- 
ceeded to the presidency of the Pennsyl- 
vania Company. He projected the Texas 
Pacific Railroad and was for many years its 
president. Colonel Scott's health failed 



COMPEiYDIlWf OF BIOGRAPHY. 



205 



him and he resigned the presidency of the 
road June I, 1 880, and died at his home in 
Darby, Pennsylvania, May 2 1, 1881. 



ROBERT TOOMBS, an American states- 
man of note, was born in Wilkes coun- 
ty, Georgia, July 2, 18 10. He attended 
the University of Georgia, and graduated 
from Union College, Schenectady, New 
York, and then took a law course at the 
University of Virginia. In 1830, before he 
had attained his majority, he was admitted 
to the bar by special act of the legislature, 
and rose rapidly in his profession, attracting 
the attention of the leading statesmen and 
judges of that time. He raised a volunteer 
company for the Creek war, and served as 
captain to the close. He was elected to the 
state legislature in 1837, re-elected in 1842, 
and in 1S44 was elected to congress. He 
had been brought up as a Jeffersonian 
Democrat, but voted for Harrison in 1840 
and for Clay in 1844. He made his first 
speech in congress on the Oregon question, 
and immediately took rank with the greatest 
debaters of that body. In 1853 he was 
elected to the United States senate, and 
again in 1859, but when his native state 
seceded he resigned his seat in the senate 
and was elected to the Confederate con- 
gress. It is stated on the best authority 
that had it not been for a misunderstanding 
which could not be explained till too late he 
would have been elected president of the 
Confederacy. He was appointed secretary 
of state by President Davis, but resigned 
after a few months and was commissioned 
brigadier-general in the Confederate army. 
He won distinction at the second battle of 
Bull Run and at Sharpsburg, but resigned 
his commission soon after and returned to 
Georgia. He organized the militia of 
Georgia to resist Sherman, and was made 



brigadier-general of the state troops. He 
left the country at the close of the war and 
did not return until 1867. He died Decem- 
ber 15, 1885. 

AUSTIN CORBIN, one of the greatest 
railway magnates of the United States, 
was born July 11, 1827, at Newport, New 
Hampshire. He studied law with Chief 
Justice Cushing and Governor Ralph Met- 
calf, and later took a course in the Harvard 
Law School, where he graduated in 1849. 
He was admitted to the bar, and practiced 
law, with Governor Metcalf as his partner, 
until October 12, 185 1. Mr. Corbin then 
removed to Davenport, Iowa, where he re- 
mained until 1865. In 1854 he was a part- 
ner in the banking firm of Macklot & Cor- 
bin, and later he organized the First Na- 
tional bank of Davenport, Iowa, which 
commenced business June 29, 1863, and 
which was the first national bank open for 
business in the United States. Mr. Corbin 
sold out his business in the Davenport bank, 
and removed to New York in 1 865 and com- 
menced business with partners under the 
style of Corbin Banking Company. Soon 
after his removal to New York he became 
interested in railroads, and became one of 
the leading railroad men of the country. 
The development of the west half of Coney 
Island as a summer resort first brought him 
into general prominence. He built a rail- 
road from New York to the island, and 
built great hotels on its ocean front. He 
next turned his attention to Long Island, 
and secured all the railroads and consoli- 
dated them under one management, became 
president of the system, and under his con- 
trol Long Island became the great ocean 
suburb of New York. His latest public 
achievement was the rehabilitation of the 
Reading Railroad, of Pennsylvania, and 



20G 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



during the same time he and his friends 
purchased the controlling interest of the 
New Jersey Central Railroad. He took it 
out of the hands of the receiver, and in 
three years had it on a dividend-paying 
basis. Mr. Corbin's death occurred June 
4, 1896. 

JAMES GORDON BENNETT, Sr., 
was one of the greatest journalists of 
America in his day. He was born Septem- 
ber 1, 1795, at New Mill, near Keith, Scot- 
land. At the age of fourteen he was sent 
to Aberdeen to study for the priesthood, 
but, convinced that he was mistaken in his 
vocation, he determined to emigrate. He 
landed at Halifax, Nova Scotia, in 18 19, 
where he attempted to earn a living by 
teaching bookkeeping. Failing in this he 
went to Boston and found employment as a 
proof reader. Mr. Bennett went to New 
York about 1822 and wrote for the news- 
papers. Later on he became assistant 
editor in the office of the "Charleston 
Courier, "but returned to New York in 1824 
and endeavored to start a commercial 
school, but was unsuccessful in this, and 
again returned to newspaper work. He 
continued in newspaper work with varying 
success until, it his suggestion, the "En- 
quirer" was consolidated with another 
paper, and became the "Courier and En- 
quirer," with James Watson Webb as 
editor and Mr. Bennett for assistant. At 
this time this was the leading American 
newspaper. He, however, severed his con- 
nection with this newspaper and tried, 
without success, other ventures in the line 
of journalism until May 6, 1835, when he 
issued the first number of the "New York 
Herald." Mr. Bennett wrote the entire 
paper, and made up for lack of news by his 
own imagination. The paper became popu- 



lar, and in 1838 he engaged European jour- 
nalists as regular correspondents. In 1841 
the income derived from his paper was at 
least one hundred thousand dollars. Dur- 
ing the Civil war the " Herald " had on its 
staff sixty-three war correspondents and the 
circulation was doubled. Mr. Bennett was 
interested with John W. Mackay in that great 
enterprise which is now known as the Mac- 
kay-Bennett Cable. He had collected for use 
in his paper over fifty thousand biographies, 
sketches and all manner of information re- 
garding every well-known man, which are 
still kept in the archives of the "Herald" 
office. He died in the city of New York in 
1872, and left to his son, James Gordon, 
Jr., one of the greatest and most profitable 
journals in the United States, or even in the 
world. 

OLIVER WENDELL HOLMES, a 
noted American, won distinction in the 
field of literature, in which he attained a 
world-wide reputation. He was born at 
Cambridge, Massachusetts, August 29, 1809. 
He received a collegiate education and grad- 
uated from Harvard in 1829, at the age of 
twenty, and took up the study of law and 
later studied medicine. Dr. Holmes at- 
tended several years in the hospitals of 
Europe and received his degree in 1836. 
He became professor of anatomy and phys- 
iology in Dartmouth in 1838, and re- 
mained there until 1847, when he was 
called to the Massachusetts Medical School 
at Boston to occupy the same chair, which 
position he resigned in 1882. The first 
collected edition of his poems appeared in 
1836, and his "Phi Beta Kappa Poems," 
"Poetry," in 1836; "Terpsichore," in 1843; 
"Urania," in 1846, and "Astrasa," won for 
him many fresh laurels. His series of 
papers in the "Atlantic Monthly," were: 



coMPENDiuyr of biography. 



207 



"Autocrat of the Breakfast Table," "Pro- 
fessor at the Breakfast Table,*' "Poet at 
the Breakfast Table," and are a series of 
masterly wit, humor and pathos. Among 
his medical papers and addresses, are : ' 'Cur- 
rents and Counter-currents in the Medical 
Science," and "Borderland in Some Prov- 
inces of Medical Science." Mr. Holmes 
edited quite a number of works, of which 
we quote the following: "Else Venner, " 
"Songs in Many Keys," "Soundings from 
the Atlantic," "Humorous Poems," "The 
Guardian Angel," "Mechanism in Thoughts 
and Morals," "Songs of Many Seasons," 
"John L. Motley" — a memoir, "The Iron 
Gate and Other Poems," ''Ralph Waldo 
Emerson," "A Moral Antipathy." Dr. 
Holmes visited England for the second time, 
and while there the degree of LL. D. 
was conferred upon him by the University 
of Edinburgh. His death occurred October 
7. 1894- • 

RUFUS CHOATE, one of the most em- 
inent of America's great lawyers, was 
born October I, 1799, at Essex, Massachu- 
setts. He entered Dartmouth in 18 15, 
and after taking his degree he remained as 
a teacher in the college for one year. He 
took up the study of law in Cambridge, and 
subsequently studied under the distinguished 
lawyer, Mr. Wirt, who was then United 
States attorney-general at Washington. Mr. 
Choatebegan the practice of lav/ in Danvers, 
Massachusetts, and from there he went to 
Salem, and afterwards to Boston, Massa- 
chusetts. While living at Salem he was 
elected to congress in 1832, and later, in 
1841, he was chosen United States senator 
to succeed Daniel Webster, Mr. Webster 
having been appointed secretary of state 
under William Henry Harrison. 

After the death of Webster. Mr- Choate 



was the acknowledged leader of the Massa- 
chusetts bar, and was looked upon by the 
younger members of the profession with an 
affection that almost amounted to a rever- 
ence. Mr. Choate's powers as an orator 
were of the rarest order, and his genius 
made it possible for him to enchant and in- 
terest his listeners, even while discussing the 
most ordinary theme. He was not merely 
eloquent on the subjects that were calculated 
to touch the feelings and stir the passions 
of his audience in themselves, but could at 
all times command their attention. He re- 
tired from active life in 1858, and was on 
his way to Europe, his physician having 
ordered a sea voyage for his health, but had 
only reached Halifax, Nova Scotia, when 
he died, July 13, 1858. 



D WIGHT L. MOODY, one of the most 
noted and effective pulpit orators and 
evangelists America has produced, was born 
in Northfield, Franklin county, Massachu- 
setts, February 5, 1837. He received but 
a meager education and worked on a farm 
until seventeen years of age, when he be- 
came clerk in a boot and shoe store in 
Boston. Soon after this he joined the Con- 
gregational church and went to Chicago, 
where he zealously engaged in missionary 
work among the poor classes. He met 
with great success, and in less than a year 
he built up a Sunday-school which numbered 
over one thousand children. When the 
war broke out he became connected with 
what was known as the "Christian Com- 
mission," and later became city missionary 
of the Young Men's Christian Association at 
Chicago. A church was built there for his 
converts and he became its unordained pas- 
tor. In the Chicago fire of 1871 the church 
and Mr. Moody's house and furniture, which 
had been .given him, were destroyed. The 



208 



COM/ ENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHT. 



church edifice was afterward replaced by a 
new church erected on the site of the old 
one. In 1873, accompanied by Ira D. 
Sankey, Mr. Moody went to Europe and 
excited great religious awakenings through- 
out England, Ireland and Scotland. In 
1875 tne y returned to America and held 
large meetings in various cities. They 
afterward made another visit to Great 
Britain for the same purpose, meeting with 
great success, returning to the United States 
in 1 8S4. Mr. Moody afterward continued 
his evangelistic work, meeting everywhere 
with a warm reception and success. Mr. 
Moody produced a number of works, some 
of which had a wide circulation. 



JOHN PIERPONT MORGAN, a financier 
of world-wide reputation, and famous 
as the head of one of the largest banking 
houses in the world, was born April 17, 
[837, at Hartford, Connecticut. He re- 
ceived his early education in the English 
high school, in Boston, and later supple- 
mented this with a course in the University 
of Gnttingen, Germany. He returned to 
the United States, in 1857, and entered the 
banking firm of Duncan, Sherman & Co., 
of New York, and, in i860, he became 
agent and attorney, in the United States, for 
George Peabody & Co., of London. He 
became the junior partner in the banking 
tirm of Dabney, Morgan & Co., in 1864, 
and that of Drexel, Morgan & Co., in 1871. 
This house was among the chief negotiators 
of railroad bonds, and was active in the re- 
organization of the West Shore Railroad, 
and its absorption by the New York Central 
Railroad. It was conspicuous in the re- 
organization of the Philadelphia & Read- 
ing Railroad, in 1S87, which a syndicate of 
capitalists, formed by Mr. Morgan, placed 
on a sound financial basis. After that time 



many other lines of railroad and gigantic 
financial enterprises were brought under Mr. 
Morgan's control, and in some respects it 
may be said he became the foremost financier 
of the century. 



THOMAS BRACKETT REED, one of 
the most eminent of American states- 
men, was born October 18, 1839, at Port- 
land, Maine, where he received his early 
education in the common schools of the 
city, and prepared himself for college. Mr. 
Reed graduated from Bowdoin College in 
1 860, and won one of the highest honors of 
the college, the prize for excellence in Eng- 
lish composition. The following four years 
were spent by him in teaching and in the 
study of law. Before his admission to the 
bar, however, he was acting assistant pay- 
master in the United States navy, and 
served on the "tin-clad'' Sybil, which pa- 
trolled the Tennessee, Cumberland and 
Mississippi rivers. After his discharge in 
1865, he returned to Portland, was admit- 
ted to the bar, and began the practice of his 
profession. He entered into political life, 
and in 1 S6S was elected to the legislature 
of Maine as a Republican, and in 1869 he 
was re-elected to the house, and in 1870 
was made state senator, from which he 
passed to attorney-general of the state. 
He retired from this office in 1873, and 
until 1877 he was solicitor for the city 
of Portland. In 1876 he was elected to 
the forty-fifth congress, which assembled 
in 1877. Mr. Reed sprung into prominence 
in that body by one of the first speeches 
which he delivered, and his long service in 
congress, coupled with his ability, gave him 
a national reputation. His influence each 
year became more strongly marked, and the 
leadership of his party was finally conceded 
to him, and in the forty-ninth and fiftieth 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



209 



congresses the complimentary nomination 
for the speakership was tendered him by the 
Republicans. That party having obtained 
the ascendency in the fifty-first congress he 
was elected speaker on the first ballot, and 
he was again chosen speaker of the fifty- 
fourth and fifth-fifth congresses. As a 
writer, Mr. Reed contributed largely to the 
magazines and periodicals, and his book 
upon parliamentary rules is generally rec- 
ognized as authority on that subject. 



P 1 



'LARA BARTON is a celebrated char- 
V_> acter among what might be termed as 
the highest grade of philanthropists Amer- 
ica has produced. She was born on a farm 
at Oxford, Massachusetts, a daughter of 
Captain Stephen Barton, and was educated 
at Clinton, New York. She engaged in 
teaching early in life, and founded a free 
school at Bordentown, the first in New Jer- 
sey. She opened with six pupils, but the 
attendance had grown to six hundred up to 
1854, when she went to Washington. She 
was appointed clerk in the patent depart- 
ment, and remained there until the out- 
break of the Civil war, when she resigned 
her position and devoted herself to the al- 
leviation of the sufferings of the soldiers, 
serving, not in the hospitals, but on the bat- 
tle field. She was present at a number of 
battles, and after the war closed she origi- 
nated, and for some time carried on at her 
own expense, the search for missing soldiers. 
She then for several years devoted her time 
to lecturing on "Incidents of the War." 
About 1 868 she went to Europe for her 
health, and settled in Switzerland, but on the 
outbreak of the Franco-German war she ac- 
cepted the invitation of the grand duchess 
of Baden to aid in the establishment of her 
hospitals, and Miss Barton afterward fol- 
lowed the German army She was deco- 



rated with the golden cross by the grand 
duke of Baden, and with the iron cross by 
the emperor of Germany. She aiso served 
for many years as president of the famous 
Red Cross Society and attained a world- 
wide reputation. 



CARDINAL JAMES GIBBONS, one of 
the most eminent Catholic clergymen 
in America, was born in Baltimore, Mary- 
land, July 23, 1834. He was given a 
thorough education, graduated at St. Charles 
College, Maryland, in 1857, and studied 
theology in St. Mary's Seminary, Baltimore, 
Maryland. In 1861 he became pastor of 
St. Bridget's church in Baltimore, and in 
1868 was consecrated vicar apostolic of 
North Carolina. In 1872 our subjeci be- 
came bishop of Richmond, Virginia, and 
five years later was made archbishop ct Bal- 
timore. On the 30th of Tune, 1880, he 
was admitted to the full degree of cardinal 
and primate of the American Catholic 
church. He was a fluent writer, and his 
book, "Faith of Our Fathers,' had a wide 
circulation. 

CHAUNCEY MITCHELL DEPEW.— 
This name is, without doubt, one 0? 
the most widely known in the United States. 
Mr. Depew was born April 23, 1834, at 
Peekskill, New York, the home of the Depew 
family for two hundred years. He attended 
the common schools of his native place. 
where he prepared himself to enter college. 
He began his collegiate course at Yale at 
the age of eighteen and graduated in 1856. 
He early took an active interest in politics 
and joined the Republican party at its for- 
mation. He then took up the study of law 
and went into the office of the Hon. Will- 
iam Nelson, of Peekskill, for that purpose, 
and in 1858 he was admitted to the bar. 



210 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



He was sent as a delegate by the new party 
to the Republican state convention of that 
year. He began the practice of his profes- 
sion in 1859, but though he was a good 
worker, his attention was detracted by the 
campaign of i860, in which he took an act- 
ive part. During this campaign he gained 
his first laurels as a public speaker. Mr. 
Depew was elected assemblyman in 1862 
from a Democratic district. In 1S63 he se- 
cured the nomination for secretary of stare, 
and gained that post by a majority of thirty 
thousand. In 1866 he left the field of pol- 
itics and entered into the active practice 
of his law business as attorney for the 
New York & Harlem Railroad Company, 
and in 1869 when this road was consoli- 
dated with the New York Central, and 
^rilled the New York Central & Hudson 
fliver Railroad, he was appointed the attor- 
ney for the new road. His rise in the rail- 
road business was rapid, and ten years after 
his entrance into the Yanderbilt system as 
attorney for a single line, he was the gen- 
eral counsel for one of the largest railroad 
systems in the world. He was also a 
director in the Lake Shore cS: Michigan 
Southern, Michigan Central, Chicago & 
Northwestern, St. Paul & Omaha, West 
Shore, and Nickel Plate railroad companies. 
In 1874 Mr. Depew was made regent of 
the State University, and a member of the 
commission appointed to superintend the 
erection of the capitol at Albany. In 18S2, 
on the resignation of W. H. Yanderbilt 
from the presidency of the New York Cen- 
tral and the accession to that office by 
James H. Rutter, Mr. Depew was made 
second vice-president, and held that posi- 
tion until the death of Mr. Rutter in 18S5. 
In this year Mr. Depew became the execu- 
tive nead of this great corporation. Mr. 
Depew's greatest fame grew from his ability 



and eloquence as an orator and "after-din- 
ner speaker," and it has been said by emi- 
nent critics that this country has never pro- 
duced his equal in wit, fluency and eloquence. 



PHILIP KEARNEY.— Among the most 
dashing and brilliant commanders in 
the United States service, few have outshone 
the talented officer whose name heads this 
sketch. He was born in New York City, 
June 2, 181 5, and was of Irish ancestry and 
imbued with all the dash and bravery of tne 
Celtic race. He graduated from Columbia 
College and studied law, but in 1837 ac- 
cepted a commission as lieutenant in the 
First United States Dragoons, of which his 
uncle, Stephen W. Kearney, was then colo- 
nel. He was sent by the government, 
soon after, to Europe to examine and report 
upon the tactics of the French cavalry. 
There he attended the Polytechnic School, 
at Samur, and subsequently served as a vol- 
unteer in Algiers, winning the cross of the 
Legion of Honor. He returned to the 
United States in 1840, and on the staff of 
General Scott, in the Mexican war, served 
with great gallantry. He was made a cap- 
tain of dragoons in 1846 and made major 
for services at Contreras and Cherubusco. 
In the final assault on the City of Mexico 
at the San Antonio Gate, Kearney lost an 
arm. He subsequently served in California 
and the Pacific coast. In 1851 he resigned 
his commission and went to Europe, where 
he resumed his military studies. In the 
Italian war, in 1859, he served as a volun- 
teer on the staff of General Maurier, of the 
French army, and took part in the battles 
of Solferino and Magenta, and for bravery 
was, for the second time, decorated with 
the cross of the Legion of Honor. On the 
opening of the Civil war he hastened home, 
and, offering his services to the general gov- 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRATIir. 



211 



crnrr?ent, was made brigadier-general of 
volunteers and placed in command of a bri- 
gade of New Jersey troops. In the cam- 
paign under McClellan he commanded a di- 
vision, and at Williamsburg and Fair Oaks 
his services were valuable and brilliant, as 
well as in subsequent engagements. At 
Harrison's Landing he was made major-gen- 
eral of volunteers. In the second battle of 
Bull Run he was conspicuous, and at the 
battle of Chantilly, September i, 1862, 
while leading in advance of his troops, Gen- 
eral Kearney was shot and killed. 



RUSSELL SAGE, one of the financial 
giants of the present century and for 
more than an average generation one of the 
most conspicuous and celebrated of Ameri- 
cans, was born in a frontier hamlet in cen- 
tral New York in August, 18 16. While Rus- 
sell was still a boy an elder brother, Henry 
Risley Sage, established a small grocery 
store at Troy, New York, and here Russell 
found his first employment, as errand boy. 
He served a five-years apprenticeship, and 
then joined another brother, Elisha M. Sage, 
in a new venture in the same line, which 
proved profitable, at least for Russell, who 
soon became its sole owner. Next he 
formed the partnership of Sage & Bates, 
and greatly extended his field of operations. 
At twenty-five he had, by his own exertions, 
amassed what was, in those days, a consid- 
erable fortune, being worth about seventy- 
five thousand dollars. He had acquired an 
influence in local politics, and four years 
later his party, the Whigs, elected him to 
the aldermanic board of Troy and to the 
treasuryship of Rensselaer county. In 1848 
he was a prominent member of the New 
York delegation to the Whig convention at 
Philadelphia, casting his first votes for Henry 
Clay, but joining the "stampede" which 



nominated Zachary Taylor. In 1850 the 
Whigs of Troy nominated him for congress, 
but he was not elected — a failure which he 
retrieved two years later, and in 1S54 he 
was re-elected by a sweeping majority. At 
Washington he ranked high in influence and 
ability. Fame as a speaker and as a polit- 
ical leader was within his grasp, when he 
gave up public life, declined a renomination 
to congress, and went back to Troy to de- 
vote himself to his private business. Six 
years later, in 1863, he removed to New 
York and plunged into the arena of Wall 
street. A man of boundless energy and 
tireless pertinacity, with wonderful judg- 
ment of men and things, he soon took his 
place as a king in finance, and, it is said, 
during the latter part of his life he con- 
trolled more ready money than any other 
single individual on this continent. 



ROGER QUARLES MILLS, a noted 
United States senator and famous as the 
father of the. "Mills tariff bill, "was born 
in Todd county, Kentucky, March 30, 1832. 
He received a liberal education in the com- 
mon schools, and removed to Palestine, 
Texas, in 1849. He took up the study of 
law, and supported himself by serving as an 
assistant in the post-office, and in the offices 
of the court clerks. In 1850 he was elected 
engrossing clerk of the Texas house of rep- 
resentatives, and in 1852 was admitted to 
the bar, while still a minor, by special act 
of the legislature. He then settled at Cor- 
sicana, Texas, and began the active prac- 
tice of his profession. He was elected to 
the state legislature in 1859, and in iS/2 he 
was elected to congress from the state at 
large, as a Democrat. After his first elec- 
tion he was continuously returned to con- 
gress until he resigned to accept the posi- 
tion of United States senator, to which he 



212 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRATHr. 



was elected March 23, 1892, to succeed 
Hon. Horace Chilton. He took his seat in 
the senate March 30, 1892; was afterward 
re-elected and ranked among the most use- 
ful and prominent members of that body. 
In 1876 he opposed the creation of the elec- 
toral commission, and in 1887 canvassed 
the state of Texas against the adoption of 
a prohibition amendment to its constitution, 
which was defeated. He introduced into 
the house of representatives the bill that was 
known as the "Mills Bill," reducing duties 
on imports, and extending the free list. 
The bill passed the house on July 21, 1888, 
and made the name of "Mills" famous 
throughout the entire country. 



HAZEN S. PINGREE, the celebrated 
Michigan political leader, was born in 
Maine in 1842. Up to fourteen years of 
age he worked hard on the stony ground of 
his father's small farm. Attending school 
in the winter, he gained a fair education, 
and when not laboring on the farm, he 
found employment in the cotton mills in the 
vicinity. He resolved to find more steady 
work, and accordingly went to Hopkinton, 
Massachusetts, where he entered a shoe fac- 
tory, but on the outbreak of the war he en- 
listed at once and was enrolled in the First 
Massachusetts Heavy Artillery. He partici- 
pated in the battle of Bull Run, which was 
his initial fight, and served creditably his 
early term of service, at the expiration of 
which he re-enlisted. He fought in the 
battles of Fredricksburg, Harris Farm, 
Spottsylvania Court House and Cold Har- 
bor. In 1864 he was captured by Mosby, 
and spent five months at Andersonville, 
Georgia, as a prisoner, but escaped at the 
end of that time. He re-entered the service 
and participated in the battles of Fort 
Fisher, Boyden, and Sailor's Creek. He 



was honorably mustered out of service, and 
in 1866 went to Detroit, Michigan, where 
he made use of his former experience in a 
shoe factory, and found work. Later he 
formed a partnership with another workman 
and started a small factory, which has since 
become a large establishment. Mr. Pin- 
gree made his entrance into politics in 1889, 
in which year he was elected by a surpris- 
ingly large majority as a Republican to the 
mayoralty of Detroit, in which office he was 
the incumbent during four consecutive terms. 
In November, 1896, he was elected gov- 
ernor of the state of Michigan. While 
mayor of Detroit, Mr. Pingree originated 
and put into execution the idea of allowing 
the poor people of the city the use of va- 
cant city lands and lots for the purpose of 
raising potatoes. The idea was enthusiast- 
ically adopted by thousands of poor families, 
attracted wide attention, and gave its author 
a national reputation as "Potato-patch Pin- 
gree." 

THOMAS ANDREW HENDRICKS, an 
eminent American statesman and a 
Democratic politician of national fame, was 
born in Muskingum county, Ohio, Septem- 
ber 7, 1 8 19. In 1822 he removed, with his 
father, to Shelby county, Indiana. He 
graduated from the South Hanover College 
in 1 84 1, and two years later was admitted 
to the bar. In 1851 he was chosen a mem- 
ber of the state constitutional convention, 
and took a leading part in the deliberations 
of that body. He was elected to congress 
in 1 85 1, and after serving two terms was 
appointed commissioner of the United States 
general land-office. In 1863 he was elected 
to the United States senate, where his dis- 
tinguished services commanded the respect 
of all parties. He was elected governor of 
Indiana in 1872, serving four years, and in 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHT. 



213 



1876 was nominated by the Democrats as 
candidate for the vice-presidency with Til- 
den. The returns in a number of states 
were contested, and resulted in the appoint- 
ment of the famous electoral commission, 
which decided in favor of the Republican 
candidates. In 1884 Mr. Hendricks was 
again nominated as candidate for the vice- 
presidency, by the Democratic party, on the 
ticket with Grover Cleveland, was elected, 
and served about six months. He died at 
Indianapolis, November 25, 1885. He was 
regarded as one of the brainiest men in the 
party, and his integrity was never ques- 
tioned, even by his political opponents. 



GARRETT A. HOBART, one of the 
many able men who have held the 
high office of vice-president of the United 
States, was born June 3, 1844, in Mon- 
mouth county, New Jersey, and in i860 en- 
tered the sophomore class at Rutgers Col- 
lege, from which he graduated in 1863 at 
the age of nineteen. He then taught 
school until he entered the law office of 
Socrates Tuttle, of Paterson, New Jersey, 
with whom he studied law, and in 1869 
was admitted to the bar. He immediately 
began the active practice of his profession 
in the office of the above named gentleman. 
He became interested in political life, and 
espoused the cause of the Republican party, 
and in 1865 held his first office, serving as 
clerk for the grand jury. He was also city 
counsel of Paterson in 1871, and in May, 
1872, was elected counsel for the board of 
chosen freeholders. He entered the state 
legislature in 1873, and was re-elected to 
the assembly in 1874. Mr. Hobart was 
made speaker of the assembly in 1876, and 
and in 1 879 was elected to the state senate. 
After serving three years in the same, he 
was elected president of that body in 1 88 1 , 



and the following year was re-elected to 
that office. He was a delegate-af -large to 
the Republican national convention in 1876 
and 1880, and was elected a member of the 
national committee in 1884, which position 
he occupied continuously until 1896. He 
was then nominated for vice-president by 
the Republican national convention, anr 1 
was elected to that office in the fall of 1896 
on the ticket with William McKinley. 



WILLIAM MORRIS STEWART, noted 
as a political leader and senator, was 
born in Lyons, Wayne county, New York, 
August 9, 1827, and removed with his par- 
ents while still a small child to Mesopota- 
mia township, Trumbull county, Ohio. He 
attended the Lyons Union school and Farm- 
ington Academy, where he obtained his ed- 
ucation. Later he taught mathematics in 
the former school, while yet a pupil, and 
with the little money thus earned and the 
assistance of James C. Smith, one of the 
judges of the supreme court of New York, 
he entered Yale College. He remained 
there until the winter of 1849-50, when, at- 
tracted by the gold discoveries in California 
he wended his way thither. He arrived at 
San Francisco in May, 1850, and later en- 
gaged in mining with pick and shovel in Ne- 
vada county. In this way he accumulated 
some money, and in the spring of 1852 he 
took up the study of law under John R. 
McConnell. The following December he 
was appointed district attorney, to which 
office he was chosen at the general election 
of the next year. In 1854 he was ap- 
pointed attorney-general of California, and 
in 1S60 he removed to Virginia City, Ne- 
vada, where he largely engaged in early 
mining litigation. Mr. Stewart was also in- 
terested in the development of the "Corn- 
stock lode," and in 1861 was chosen a 



214 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



member of the territorial council. He was 
elected a member of the constitutional con- 
vention in 1863, and was elected United 
States senator in 1864, and re-elected in 
1869. At the expiration of his term in 
1875, he resumed the practice of law in 
Nevada, California, and the Pacific coast 
generally. He was thus engaged when he 
was elected again to the United States sen- 
ate as a Republican in 1887 to succeed the 
late James G. Fair, a Democrat, and took 
his seat March 4, 1887. On the expiration 
of his term he was again re-elected and be- 
came one of the leaders of his party in con- 
gress. His ability as an orator, and the 
prominent part he took in the discussion of 
public questions, gained him a national rep- 
utation. 

GEORGE GRAHAM VEST, for many 
years a prominent member of the 
United States senate, was born in Frank- 
fort, Kentucky, December 6, 1848. He 
graduated from Center College in 1868, and 
from the law department of the Transyl- 
vania University of Lexington, Kentucky, 
in 1853. In the same year he removed to 
Missouri and began the practice of his pro- 
fession. In 1 860 he was an elector on the 
Democratic ticket, and was a member of 
the lower house of the Missouri legislature 
in 1860-61. He was elected to the Con- 
federate congress, serving two years in the 
lower house and one in the senate. He 
then resnmed the practice of law, and in 
1879 was elected to the senate of the United 
States to succeed James Shields. He was 
re-elected in 1885, and again in 1891 and 
1897. His many years of service in the 
National congress, coupled with his ability 
as a speaker and the active part he took in 
the discussion of public questions, gave him 
a wide reputation. 



HANNIBAL HAMLIN, a noted American 
statesman, whose name is indissolubly 
connected with the history of this country, 
was born in Paris, Maine, August 27, 1809. 
He learned the printer's trade and followed 
that calling for several years. He then 
studied law, and was admitted to practice 
in 1833. He was elected to the legislature 
of the state of Maine, where he was several 
times chosen speaker of the lower house. 
He was elected to congress by the Demo- 
crats in 1843, and re-elected in 1845. In 
1848 he was chosen to the United States 
senate and served in that body until 1 861 . 
He was elected governor of Maine in 1857 
on the Republican ticket, but resigned when 
re-elected to the United States senate 
the same year. He was elected vice-presi- 
dent of the United States on the ticket with 
Lincoln in i860, and inaugurated in March, 
1 861. In 1865 he was appointed collector 
of the port of Boston. Beginning with 
1869 he served two six-year terms in the 
United States senate, and was then ap- 
pointed by President Garfield as minister to 
Spain in 1881. His death occurred July 4, 
1891. 

TSHAM G. HARRIS, famous as Confed- 
1 erate war governor of Tennessee, and 
distinguished by his twenty years of service 
in the senate of the United States, was 
born in Franklin county, Tennessee, and 
educated at the Academy of Winchester. 
He then took up the study of law. was ad- 
mitted to the bar, and commenced practice 
at Paris, Tennessee, in 1841. He was 
elected to the state legislature in 1847, was 
a candidate for presidential elector on the 
Democratic ticket in 1848, and the next 
year was elected to congress from his dis- 
trict, and re-elected in 185 1. In 1853 he 
was renominated by the Democrats of his 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



215 



district, but declined, and removed to Mem- 
phis, where he took up the practice of law. 
He was a presidential elector-at-large from 
Tennessee in 1856, and was elected gov- 
ernor of the state the next year, and again 
in 1859, and in 1861. He was driven from 
Nashville by the advance of the Union 
armies, and for the last three years of the 
war acted as aid upon the staff of the com- 
manding general of the Confederate army 
of Tennessee. After the war he went to 
Liverpool, England, where he became a 
merchant, but returned to Memphis in 1867, 
and resumed the practice of law. In 1877 
he was elected to the United States senate, 
to which position he was successively re- 
elected until his death in 1897. 



NELSON DINGLEY, Jr., for nearly a 
quarter of a century one of the leaders 
in congress and framer of the famous 
" Dingley tariff bill," was born in Durham, 
Maine, in 1832. His father as well as all 
his ancestors, were farmers, merchants and 
mechanics and of English descent. Young 
Dingley was given the advantages first of 
the common schools and in vacations helped 
his father in the store and on the farm. 
When twelve years of age he attended high 
school and at seventeen was teaching in a 
country school district and preparing him- 
self for college. The following year he en- 
tered Waterville Academy and in 1851 en- 
tered Colby University. After a year and a 
half in this institution he entered Dart- 
mouth College and was graduated in 1855 
with high rank as a scholar, debater and 
"writer. He next studied law and was ad- 
mitted to the bar in 1856. But instead of 
practicing his profession he purchased the 
" Lewistown (Me.) Journal," which be- 
came famous throughout the New England 
states as a leader in the advocacy of Repub- 



lican principles. About the same time Mr. 
Dingley began his political career, although 
ever after continuing at the head of the 
newspaper. He was soon elected to the 
state legislature and afterward to the lower 
house of congress, where he became a 
prominent national character. He also 
served two terms as governor of Maine. 



OLIVER PERRY MORTON, a distin- 
guished American statesman, was born 
in Wayne county, Indiana, August 4, 1823. 
His early education was by private teaching 
and a course at the Wayne County Seminary. 
At the age of twenty years he entered the 
Miami University at Oxford, Ohio, and at 
the end of two years quit the college, began 
the study of law in the office of John New- 
man, of Centerville, Indiana, and was ad- 
mitted to the bar in 1847. 

Mr. Morton was elected judge on the 
Democratic ticket, in 1852, but on thf. 
passage of the " Kansas- Nebraska Bill " he 
severed his connection with that party, and 
soon became a prominent leader of the Re- 
publicans. He was elected governor of In- 
diana in 1 86 1, and as war governor became 
well known throughout the country. He 
received a paralytic stroke in 1865, which 
partially deprived him of the use of his 
limbs. He was chosen to the United States 
senate from Indiana, in 1867, and wielded 
great influence in that body until the time 
of his death, November 1, 1877. 



JOHN B. GORDON, a brilliant Confeder- 
ateofhcer and noted senatorof theUnited 
States, was born in Upson county, Georgia, 
February 6, 1832. He graduated from the 
State University, studied law, and took up 
the practice of his profession. At the be- 
ginning of the war he entered the Confederate 
service as captain of infantry, and rapidty 



216 



COMFEXD1UM OF BIOGRAPHT. 



rose to the rank of lieutenant-general, 
commanding one wing of the Confederate 
army at the close of the war. In 1 868 he 
was Democratic candidate for governor of 
Georgia, and it is said was elected by a large 
majority, but his opponent was given the 
office. He was a delegate to the national 
Democratic conventions in 1868 and 1872, 
and a presidential elector both years. In 
1873 he was elected to the United States 
senate. In 1886 he was elected governor 
of Georgia, and re-elected in 1888. He 
was again elected to the United States 
senate in 1890, serving until 1897, when he 
was succeeded by A. S. Clay. He was 
regarded as a leader of the southern Democ- 
racy, and noted for his fiery eloquence. 



STEPHEN JOHNSON FIELD, an illus- 
trious associate justice of the supreme 
court of the United States, was born at 
Haddam, Connecticut, November 4, 18 16, 
being one of the noted sons of Rev. D. 
D. Field. He graduated from Williams 
College in 1837. took up the study of law 
with his brother, David Dudley Field, be- 
coming his partner upon admission to the 
bar. He went to California in 1849, and at 
once began to take an active interest in the 
political affairs of that state. He was 
elected alcalde of Marysville, in 1850, and 
in the autumn of the same year was elected 
to the state legislature. In 1857 he was 
elected judge of the supreme court of the 
state, and two years afterwards became its 
chief justice. In 1863 he was appointed by 
President Lincoln as associate justice of the 
supreme court of the United States. During 
his incumbency, in 1873, he was appointed 
by the governor of California one of a com- 
mission to examine the codes of the state 
and for the preparation of amendments to 
the same for submission to the legislature. 



In 1877 he was one of the famous electoral 
commission of fifteen members, and voted 
as one of the seven favoring the election of 
Tilden to the presidency. In 1880 a large 
portion of the Democratic party favored his 
nomination as candidate for the presidency. 
He retired in the fall of 1897, having 
served a greater number of years on the 
supreme bench than any of his associates or 
predecessors, Chief Justice Marshall corning 
next in length of service. 



JOHN T. MORGAN, whose services in 
the United States senate brought him 
into national prominence, was born in 
Athens, Tennessee, June 20, 1824. At the 
age of nine years he emigrated to Alabama, 
where he made his permanent home, and 
where he received an academic education. 
He then took up the study of law, and was 
admitted to the bar in 1845. He took a 
leading part in local politics, was a presi- 
dential elector in i860, casting his ballot 
for Breckenridge and Lane, and in 1861 
was a delegate to the state convention which 
passed the ordinance of secession. In May, 
of the same year, he joined the Confederate 
army as a private in Company I, Cahawba 
Rifles, and was soon after made major and 
then lieutenant-colonel of the Fifth Regiment. 
In 1862 he was commissioned colonel, and 
soon after made brigadier-general and as- 
signed to the command of a brigade in Vir- 
ginia. He resigned to join his old regiment 
whose colonel had been killed. He was 
soon afterward again made brigadier-gen- 
eral and given command of the brigade that 
included his regiment. 

After the war he returned to the prac- 
tice of law, and continued it up to the time 
of his election to the United States senate, ir? 
1877. He was a presidential elector in 1876, 
and cast his vote for Tilden and Hendricks 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



217 



He was re-elected to the senate in 1883, 
and again in 1889, and 1895. His speeches 
and the measures he introduced, marked 
as they were by an intense Americanism, 
brought him into national prommence. 



WILLIAM McKINLEY, the twenty-fifth 
president of the United States, was 
born at Niles, Trumbull county, Ohio, Jan- 
uary 29, 1844. He was of Scotch-Irish 
ancestry, and received his early education 
in a Methodist academy in the small village 
of Poland, Ohio. At the outbreak of the 
war Mr. McKinley was teaching school, 
earning twenty-five dollars per month. As 
soon as Fort Sumter was fired upon he en- 
listed in a company that was formed in 
Poland, which was inspected and mustered 
in by General John C. Fremont, who at 
first objected to Mr. McKinley, as being too 
young, but upon examination he was finally 
accepted. Mr. McKinley was seventeen 
when the war broke out but did not look his 
age. He served in the Twenty-third Ohio 
Infantry throughout the war, was promoted 
from sergeant to captain, for good conduct 
on the field, and at the close of the war, 
for meritorious services, he was brevetted 
major. After leaving the army Major Mc- 
Kinley took up the study of law, and was 
admitted to the bar, and in 1869 he took 
his initiation into politics, being elected pros- 
ecuting attorney of his county as a Republi- 
can, although the district was usually Demo- 
cratic. In 1 876 he was elected to congress, 
and in a call upon the President-elect, Mr. 
Hayes, to whom he went for advice upon the 
way he should shape his career, he was 
told that to achieve fame and success he 
must take one special line and stick to it. 
Mr. McKinley chose tariff legislation and 
he became an authority in regard to import 
duties. He was a member of congress for 



many years, became chairman of the ways 
and means committee, and later he advo- 
cated the famous tariff bill that bore his 
name, which was passed in 1S90. In the 
next election the Republican party was 
overwhelmingly defeated through the coun- 
try, and the Democrats secured more than 
a two thirds majority in the lower house, 
and also had control of the senate, Mr. 
McKinley being defeated in his own district 
by a small majority. He was elected gov- 
ernor of Ohio in 1891 by a plurality of 
twenty-one thousand, five hundred and 
eleven, and two years later he was re-elected 
by the still greater plurality of eighty thou- 
sand, nine hundred and ninety-five. He was 
a delegate-at-large to the Minneapolis Re-< 
publican convention in 1892, and was in- 
structed to support the nomination of Mr. 
Harrison. He was chairman of the con^ 
vention, and was the only man from Ohio 
to vote for Mr. Harrison upon the roll call. 
In November, 1892, a number of prominent 
politicians gathered in New York to discuss 
the political situation, and decided that the 
result of the election had put an end to Mc- 
Kinley and McKinleyism. But in less than 
four years from that date Mr. McKinley was 
nominated for the presidency against the 
combined opposition of half a dozen rival 
candidates. Much of the credit for his suc- 
cess was due to Mark A. Hanna, of Cleve- 
land, afterward chairman of the Republican 
national committee. At the election which 
occurred in November, 1896, Mr. McKinley 
was elected president of the United States 
by an enormous majority, on a gold stand- 
ard and protective tariff platform. He was 
inaugurated on the 4th of March, 1897, 
and called a special session of congress, to 
which was submitted a bill for tariff reform, 
which was passed in the latter part of July 
of that vear. 



218 



C OMPBNDIl 'M OF BIO GRA PHY. 



CINCINNATUS HEINE MILLER, 
known in the literary world as Joaquin 
Miller, "the poet of the Sierras," was born 
at Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1 841. When only 
about thirteen years of age he ran away 
from home and went to the mining regions 
in California and along the Pacific coast. 
Some time afterward he was taken prisoner 
by the Modoc Indians and lived with them 
for five years. He learned their language 
and gained great influence with them, fight- 
ing in their wars, and in all modes of living 
became as one of them. In 1858 he left 
the Indians and went to San Francisco, 
where he studied law, and in i860 was ad- 
mitted to the bar in Oregon. In 1 S66 he 
was elected a county judge in Oregon and 
served four years. Early in the seventies 
he began devoting a good deal of time to 
literary pursuits, and about 1874 he settled 
in Washington, D. C. He wrote many 
poems and dramas that attracted consider- 
able attention and won him an extended 
reputation. Among his productions may be 
mentioned " Pacific Poems," " Songs of the 
Sierras," "Songs of the Sun Lands," 
" Ships in the Desert," " Adrianne.a Dream 
of Italy," "Danites," "Unwritten History," 
" First Families of the Sierras " (a novel), 
" One Fair Woman " ia novel), "Songs of 
Italy," " Shadows of Shasta," "The Gold- 
Seekers of the Sierras," and a number of 
others. 

GEORGE FREDERICK ROOT, a 
noted music publisher and composer, 
was born in Sheffield, Berkshire county, 
Massachusetts, on August 30, 1820. While 
working on his father's farm he found time 
to learn, unaided, several musical instru- 
ments, and in his eighteenth year he went 
to Boston, where he soon found employ- 
ment as a teacher of music. From 1839 



until 1844 ne gave instructions in music in 
the public schools of that city, and was also 
director of music in two churches. Mr. 
Root then went to New York and taught 
music in the various educational institutions 
of the city. He went to Paris in 1850 and 
spent one year there in study, and on his re- 
turn he published rhis first song, "Hazel 
Dell." It appeared as the work of " Wur- 
zel," which was the German equivalent of 
his name. He was the originator of the 
normal musical institutions, and when the 
first one was started in New York he 
was one of the faculty. He removed to 
Chicago, Illinois, in i860, and established 
the firm of Root & Cady, and engaged in 
the publication of music. He received, in 
1872, the degree of " Doctor of Music" 
from the University of Chicago. After the 
war the firm became George F. Root & Co., 
of Cincinnati and Chicago. Mr. Root did 
much to elevate the standard of music in this 
country by his compositions and work as a 
teacher. Besides his numerous songs he 
wrote a great deal of sacred music and pub- 
lished many collections of vocal and instru- 
mental music. For many years he was the 
most popular song writer in America, and 
was one of the greatest song writers of the 
war. He is also well-known as an author, 
and his work in that line comprises: " Meth- 
ods for the Piano and Organ," "Hand- 
book on Harmony Teaching," and innumer- 
able articles for the musical press. Among 
his many and most popular songs of the 
wartime are: " Rosalie, the Prairie-flower," 
" Battle Cry of Freedom," " Just Before the 
Battle," "Tramp, Tramp, Tramp, the Boys 
are Marching," " The Old Folks are Gone," 
"A Hundred Years Ago," "Old Potomac 
Shore, "and " There's Music in the Air." Mr. 
Root's cantatas include " The Flower Queen ' 
and "The Haymakers." He died in 1896. 



BIOGRAPHIES 



PROGRESSIVE MEN 11 WOMEN 



OK 



KOSCIUSKO COUNTY 



INDIANA 




<Qu-%t*Q. 



C^t^Uld. 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



GEN. REUBEN WILLIAMS. 

It is a recognized fact that the most 
powerful influence on public life is the press. 
It reaches the people in greater numbers 
and thus has been a most important factor 
in moulding public opinion and shaping the 
destiny of the nations. The gentleman 
whose name introduces this review is prom- 
inently connected with the journalism of 
Indiana and is now the publisher of the 
Northern Indianian and Warsaw Daily 
Times. This section of the state recognizes 
him as one of its ablest representatives and 
his connection with the affairs which affect 
the general welfare has been of such a char- 
acter that the public has long acknowledged 
his power and beneficial support. During 
the period of the Civil war the nation ac- 
knowledged its indebtedness to him for his 
able services on the field of battle and his 
name will always adorn the roster of Indi- 
ana's distinguished military men. 

The Williams family has long been con- 
nected with the history of this country, hav- 
ing been established here during colonial 
days. The grandfather of the subject was 
numbered among the heroes of the Revolu- 
tion, serving as a volunteer in the Mary- 



land Continental Line. Again the family 
was represented in its country's service 
when the second war with England broke 
out in 1812, the father of General Williams 
serving as sergeant in command of the guard 
for the prisoners of war captured by Com- 
modore Perry at the battle of Lake Erie, 
later being transferred to Chillicothe, Ohio, 
then the capital of the state. Hostilities 
having ceased, Sergeant Williams located in 
Tiffin, Ohio, where in 1833 was born the 
subject of this review. 

When a lad of twelve years Reuben 
Williams began to earn his own livelihood. 
His parents being in limited circumstances 
he wished no longer to burden them with 
caring for him, consequently from that age 
dates the beginning of his career as an in- 
dependent factor in the world of affairs. 
After a few short winter terms of school 
and a three months seminary course, he en- 
tered the printing office of Andrew J. Bair, 
where he began to learn the trade that in one 
form or other was to be his life-work. Four 
years were spent as an apprentice, after 
which for a short time he published the 
Warsaw Democrat. He then traveled 
through the West, wishing to see something 
of the country, and worked for some time 



222 



COMPEXDIUU OF BIOGRAPHY. 



in printing offices in fowa, after which, in 
1856, he returned to Indiana. Acting upon 
the solicitation of many prominent citizen-. 
he returned to Warsaw, Indiana, and es 
tablished a paper for the purpose of setting 
fi rth tin views of the newly organized Re- 
publican party. This work from the be- 
ginning prospered. The editorials of the 
new paper, the Northern Indianian. upheld 
the principles of the new party and sup- 
ported with unfaltering allegiance the Union 
cause. 

Five years thus passed and Mr. Will- 
iams then went to the defense of his coun- 
try in the field. The day that Fort Sumter 
surrendered he caused to be published a call 
for volunteers and April [9, [861, the first 
company from Kosciusko county started for 
the field and became a pan of the Twelfth 
Indiana Regiment, Mr. Williams being 
chos oncl lieutenant. After the first 

battle of I '.till Run the order came for the 
regiment to proceed at once to Harper's 
Ferry, in the meantime the three months 
term had expired, but with characteristic 
promptitude Mr. William- at once began the 
task of reorganization and within a week 
alim >st all of the original force had re-en- 
listed, lie was afterward made captain of 
the company, which he commanded in a 
number of minor engagements in Virginia. 
In the spring of [862 the regiment com- 
posed the advance guard of the Union army 
when it occupied Winchester, Virginia. On 
the Ilth of December, [861, Captain Will- 
iam- was captured by a Confederate force 
under Stonewall Jackson and sent to Libby 
prison, where he remained until exchanged 
the following March. Upon the reorgan- 
ization of the regiment he was commissioned 
lieutenant -colonel and after the battle of 



Richmond became colonel. After succeed- 
ing t<> the colonelcy of his regiment, he was 
frequently called upon to take command of 
the brigade by virtue of his being the rank- 
ing officer, and throughout the Atlanta cam- 
paign his service was in thi- capacity. After 
the fall of the city he was selected a- one of 
the court martial convened to try the Indi- 
ana conspirators, or "Knights of the Golden 
Circle,"' a treasonable organization existing 
in Indiana and other state-. In this ca- 
pacity he strongly favored capital punis 
ment for the offender-. This duty being 
ended, Colonel William- rejoined his regi- 
ment at Savannah and commanded it on the 
march through the Carolinas and on 
Washington, where it had the honor of lead- 
ing in the grand review, by -penal order 
from Cen. John A. Logan, and was the 
first 1 tlie President and the 

thousands of visitors from all portions if 
the country. It- appearance as it marched 
down Pennsylvania avenue in column 
companies was so impressive a- to draw 
forth sti nn- of cheers from the spectators, 
while officers and men were almost covered 
with the bouquets and \\ reaths of tl< iwers be- 
stowed by the fair ladies of Washington. 
During the advance through the Carolina- 
it became necessary to destroy certain rail- 
roads and the task, a most difficult and dan- 
gerous one. was assigned to Colonel Will- 
iams and his commands. The work was 
so faithfully executed that he not only re- 
ceived the personal thank- of ( Generals Sher- 
man and Howard, hut upon his arrival in 
Washington he was appointed brevet briga- 
dier general, whose commission of appoint- 
ment the president requested Gen. John A. 
Logan to deliver in person with his com- 
pliment-. 1 ieneral William- was an excel- 



COMPEXDICM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



223 



lent disciplinarian ami the troops which he 
had commanded had but few rivals in the 
held. His men were so well drilled, so 
soldierly in appearance and so thoroughly 
understood the laws and demand.- 1 f war- 
fare that they won the most favorable com- 
ment wherever seen, and for bravery, fol- 
lowing the example of their leader, they 
were unexcelled. Upon his return home 
General Williams engaged in the book and 
stationery business for a short time, but 
journalism was the field in which he had be- 
come best known and in which he had 
achieved such high success. Many of his 
old friends solicited him to become the editor 
of the Northern Indianian and almost con- 
tinuously since be has been at the head of 
that well-known and able journal. In 1867 
be was chosen circuit court clerk of Kos- 
ciusko county and after a four-years term 
was re-elected. 

In 1875, upon the urgent solicitation of 
prominent Republicans in the city of Ft. 
Wayne, he consented to take charge of the 
Daily Gazette there and continued to edit 
that paper until the following December, 
when be received the appointment of deputy 
second comptroller of the United States 
treasury at Washington, which office he 
held for seven months. At the expiration 
of that time he again hearkened favorably 
to the urgent solicitation of old friends in 
Kosciusko county by returning to Warsaw 
and resuming control of the Northern Indi- 
anian, which paper he has since edited. 
General Williams, in i88r, established the 
Warsaw Daily Times, which he has also 
published since in connection with the 
Northern Indianian. The Northern Indi- 
anian has a circulation of four thousand 
and the Dailv Times nine hundred. For 



twenty-five years or more his son. Mel R, 
Williams, has been associated with him in 
the newspaper work and at present time is 
the business manager of the firm. 

On the 5th of April. 1K57. General Will- 
iams was united in marriage t < • .Miss Je- 
mima Hubler, daughter of Major Henry 
Hubler, now deceased, a veteran sol- 
dier of the war with Mexico and the war of 
the Rebellion. To General Williams' union 
with Miss Hubler six children were burn. 
viz: Ida Evelyn, deceased, was the wife of 
S. B. Frasier; Mel R. is the partner of his 
father; Thomas Bramwell resides in Chi- 
cago and is an attache of the American 
Press Association; Logan H. is city editor 
of the Times and Indianian in his father's 
office; George B., of Ligonier. Indiana, is 
the assistant cashier in the Citizens' Bank 
of that city, and Paul R., the youngest of 
the family, is a practical printer and resides 
in the city of Warsaw. General Williams 
is a member of the Society of the Army of 
the Tennessee, also belongs to the Henry 
Chipman Post, G. A. R., and for a number 
of years has been identified with the Method- 
ist church. 



SILAS W. CHIPMAX. 

Silas W. Chipman', president of the State 
Bank of Warsaw, Indiana, is a native of 
Vermont and was born in Addison county, 
that state, on the 16th day of March, 1826. 
The parents from whom he descended were 
Isaac and Sarah H. ( Hemingway ) Chip- 
man, both natives of Vermont and of Eng- 
lish descent. Their ancestors were among 
the early pioneers of New England, immi- 
grating to the United States in the colonial 



224 



COMPEXDIi'M OF BIOGRAPHY. 



days, some of whom came over on the "May- 
flower." Isaac and Sarah H. Chipman were 
married in Addison county, Vermont, and 
settled in Shoreham township where he 
owned and conducted a tine farm of about 
three hundred acres. He was a farmer In- 
occupation and followed that pursuit all 
his life. He was a Whig, and later a Re- 
publican in politics and figured very prom- 
inently during his day in the political his- 
tory of his state and county. He was a 
justice of the peace for many years before he 
died and also served several terms in the leg- 
islature and senate. He and wife were de- 
voted members of the Congregational church 
nearlv all their lives and were among the 
highly respected people of the community in 
which they resided. They were the parents 
of seven children, of whom three are now 
living, viz.: Hannah A., widow of Edgar 
S. Catlin. resides in Warsaw; Sarah J., wife 
of William S. Smart, resides in Brandon, 
Vermont, and Silas W.. the subject of this 
review, the next to the eldest member of the 
family. 

Silas W. was reared on his father's farm 
in Vermont and resided there until his twen- 
ty-third year, meantime receiving his edu- 
cational training in the district schools of his 
neighborhood. In May, 1840. he came to 
Kosciusko county, Indiana, and found em- 
ployment in the store of At wood & Potten- 
ger, of Warsaw, as a clerk, in which ca- 
pacity he continued about six months. At 
the expiration of that time he went in part- 
nership with his brother. Samuel H.. who 
had come to this county in 1830, and en- 
gaged in the mercantile business at Warsaw 
under the firm name of Chipman & Brother. 
The two continued together for some tunc 
and then -old out. after which Silas W. en- 



gaged in business with Messrs. Funk and 
Upson under the name of Chipman. Funk 
iS: Company. This partnership continued 
for ten or twelve years, when Mr. Funk re- 
tired and the linn continued under the name 
of Chipman & Upson until 1881, when it 
was dissolved, Mr. C. L. Bartol purchasing 
the stock. 

In 1881 the First National Bank of 
Warsaw was reorganized and incorporated 
under the name of the State Bank of War- 
saw and a few years later Mr. Chipman was 
elected its president, in which capacity he 
has served ever since. This bank was re- 
organized in December. 1001. and incor- 
porated under the name of the State Bank 
of Warsaw, with Mr. Chipman still its presi- 
dent, Edgar Haymond, vice-president. Abe 
Brubaker, cashier, and Walter W. Chipman. 
as-istant cashier. The bank has a capital 
-lock of one hundred thousand dollars and 
is one of the strongest and safest financial 
institutions in northern Indiana. Mr. Bru- 
baker resigned his position as cashier in 
March. 1002. since which time tire place has 
been tilled by Ashbel 0. Catlin. 

Mr. Chipman was united in marriage in 
Warsaw on April iS. 1867, to Miss Sarah 
M. Wilson, of Ohio, whose birth occurred 
March 6, 1850, the daughter of Thomas and 
Juliette Wilson. To this union five chil- 
dren were born, viz: Wilbur, who died in 
infancy: Walter W.. assistant cashier in the 
State Bank of Warsaw; Arthur, who died 
in infancy: Antoinette died at the age of 
thirteen, and Helen M.. an accomplished 
musician who still makes her home under 
the parental n 1 >f. 

Mr. Chipman and wife are both consist- 
ent members of the Presbyterian church, in 
which he has been an elder for more than 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



225 



fifteen years. He is a Republican in politics 
and while he takes an active part in the wel- 
fare of his party has never been an aspirant 
for public office. Mr. Chipman is a gentle- 
man of pleasing personality, amiable in dis- 
position, affable in manner and has h mg 
been noted for honor and integrity in all of 
his relations with his fellow men. He is 
respected by the community, beloved as a 
neighbor and friend and recognized as one 
of the successful men and representative 
citizens of the county of Kosciusko. 

Although enrolled among the well-to-do 
men of the city in which he lives, Mr. Chip- 
man is one of the most unostentatious of 
men. open hearted and candid in manner 
and retaining in his demeanor the simplicity 
and candor of the old-time gentleman. Such 
is the brief life story of one who is cheered 
by the retrospect of a long and useful career, 
who has indelibly stamped the impress of 
his strong personality on the community 
where so many of his years have been spent 
and whose record will stand as an enduring 
monument long after his labors are ended 
and his name becomes a memory. 



REV. GEORGE H. THAYER, Deceased. 

One of the most talented, eloquent and 
pious clergymen who ever filled a pulpit in 
the city of Warsaw, Kosciusko county, Indi- 
ana, was the late deeply mourned George H. 
Thayer, who, though somewhat skeptical in 
his earlier days, became deeply imbued with 
a religious fervor at the age of about seven- 
teen or eighteen years, united with the Meth- 
odist Episcopal church, and in 1836 entered 
the ministry. 



Rev. Thayer was born in Browne coun- 
ty, New York, December 29, 1807, and died 
at the home of his daughter, Mrs. Elma G. 
Fribley, in Bourbon, Marshall county, In- 
diana, December 6, 1899. His father, James 
Thayer, was a native of Massachusetts and 
descended from an ante-Revolutionary fam- 
ily; (hiring the war of 181 J he had com- 
mand of a company of militia, for which 
reason he was always known as Captain 
Thayer until the day of his death, which 
occurred in the state of New York. 

George H. Thayer, although born in 
Browne county, was reared in Onondaga 
county, New York, and was graduated from 
, the Onondaga Academy. He taught school 
prior to and after graduation. In the earlier 
days of his ministry he sometimes walked 
five miles to fill an appointment, and after- 
ward went on horseback as far as twenty- 
five miles to keep an appointment, regardless 
of weather and bad roads and with no com- 
pensation in a monetary sense, as he gained 
his livelihood in secular pursuits, having 
been reared a farmer. He was a pioneer of 
Indiana and located in Peru in 1845. hi s 
family following him in 1847. He taught 
school in Peru two years and then removed 
to Marshall county, where he had previously 
bought a tract of land in a timber district, 
and this tract he at once cleared up and de- 
veloped into a valuable farm. From this 
farm he removed to Bourbon, Kosciusko 
county, in 1859, anc l la-id out Thayer's ad- 
dition to that then village. He was a re- 
markably public-spirited gentleman, took 
great interest in public education, and gave 
to the town the ground on which now stands 
the elegant school edifice. 

Rev. Mr. Thayer was twice married. 
For his first wife he selected Miss Hannah 



22C 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



Griffin, of Homer, New York, who died in 
Bourbon, Indiana, in 1865, the mother of 
three children: Hon. Henry G, late state 
r ; Hon. John D., who died in Warsaw, 
h diana, in 1895, and Frances Augusta, who 
died in Euclid. New York, in [843. Mrs, 
Hannah (Griffin) Thayer was called from 
her earthly home and loving family in [865, 
and in [867 Rev. Thayer married Mrs. 
I irockett, who bore him two daugh- 
ters, I.illie and Elma (1. Mrs. Amelia Thay- 
er passed away in 1881, and the father then 
made his home with his sun in Plymouth, 
where he lived for thirteen years, and then 
for the live years just prior to hi- death 
with, hi- daughter. Mrs. Elma < '<■ FridJey. 
Mr. Thayer left ten grandchildren and 
great-grandchildren. The former are 
. H.. Jr.; James \Y. : Mrs. Angelica 
Young, of Plymouth; Mrs. Hattie Hendee, 
■ 11 : Misses Jessie and .Mary, of 
Warsaw; Harry D., of Chicago; Helen. 
Frances and Eleanor Fribley, of Bourbon. 
The great-grandchildren are Edgar M., Paul 
M., Frances A.. Walter W. and Florence 
Alice Young, of Plymouth-, and Marie and 
John Hendee. of Anderson. 

The Rev. George 11. Thayer took a de- 
cided interest in the political affair- of the 
state and nation, bnt he never craved public 

ce. He was an original and profound 
thinker on all subjects and politics came 
within the -cope of his cogitations. Ili- 
first presidential vote was given f"r Andrew 
Jack-Mii. hut he was an abolitionist at a time 
when u required unwavering moral courage 
to declare himself to he such. 1 le joined the 
Whig Manx at it- organization and later the 
R< 1 party when it came into exist- 

ence. < If the thirteen presidential candi- 

tes for whom he voted, eleven were elect- 



ed. Fraternally he was a Master Mason, a 
Royal Arch Mason and a Knight Templar: 
his children and grandchildren were with 
him in these lodges. But his life work was 
in the cause of religion, and fur forty-eight 
year- he preached the Gospel gratuitously, 
lie was very social in his habits and enjoyed 
the companionship of his friend- and neigh- 
bors. This good man seemed to have Keen 
fully aware of his approaching demise, 1- 
<>n the Sunday before his demise, while at 
church and actively engaged in the service, 
lie remarked that he believed it would be the 
last time that he would lie permitted to 
mingle with worshipers in the house of God, 
and this premonition proved to he true. 

The funeral services were held at the 
Methodist Episcopal church, Bourbon, Indi- 
ana, Friday, December 8, at one o'clock 1'. 
M.. the Rev. Charles E. Davis, pastor, as- 
sisted by Rev. W. W. Raymond, of St. 
Thomas Episcopal church, and Rev. W. E. 
McKinzie, of the Methodist Episcopal 
church. Plymouth, Indiana. Revs. J. C. 
Breckenridge and C. H. Spitler and W. H. 
Rittenhouse, J. X. Martin and Charles Frill- 
ies, of Bourbon, and A. I. Duryee, of Etna 
Green, all of whom acted as pall bearer-. 
The pastor's sermon was an eloquent and 
heartfelt tribute to the life and character of 
the deceased, dwelling particularly upon the 
completeness of his long and useful life 
spent in the service of Coil and in the ex- 
emplification of the Christian virtues. lie 
spoke with deep feeling of his personal loss 
in the death of one whose vigor of intellect, 
keen spiritual insight and power- of clear 
and logical expression were of great help to 
his ministerial co-workers, and whose kind- 
ly, loving and sympathetic nature endeared 
him to all who knew him. This peaceful 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



227 



end, surrounded by loving relatives and 
friends, was, the speaker said, a fitting con- 
clusion tu his upright, consistent Christian 
life and furnished an example which all 
should emulate. 

The other ministers present followed 
with brief tributes to the worth of their de- 
parted friend and brother, all of them speak- 
ing with deep emotion of their love for him 
and admiration for his many noble qualities 
of mind and heart, especially acknowledg- 
ing their indebtedness to him for help and 
inspiration in their chosen work. The chair 
near the pulpit which the deceased had for- 
merly occupied was appropriately draped 
and reminded all present that this grand, 
good man would meet with them no more 
on earth, though the sweet memory of his 
walk here will long' remain as an inspiration 
to so live that all may meet him beyond the 
grave wdiere partings are unknown. Rev. 
\Y. \Y. Raymond said it seemed to him like 
a benediction to come into the kindly pres- 
ence of the venerable man of God who had 
just been called home. He then read the 
following letter from the Rev. J. A. Max- 
well, formerly pastor of the Methodist Epis- 
copal church of Plymouth: 

Ke wanna, Ind., December 7, 1899. 
Hon. H. G. Thayer, Plymouth, Ind. 

My Dear Sir: — I have the notice of your father's 
funeral. I regret very much my inability to attend. 
I would like so much to be present and pay some 
tribute to his worth. In preaching, his face was al- 
ways an inspiration to me. His approval or disap- 
proval — for either was very marked in his expressions 
— would always make me more thoughtful. Few men 
I have ever known had a more logical mind. Through 
what a marvelous age he has lived. We cannot regret 
his going, for he had reached an unusual age and was 
ripe for his heavenly home. God's picture of a fin- 
ished life migVit well be his epitaph — 
"Thou shalt come to thy graceful age, 

Like as a shock of corn cometh in his season." 



Only that one has lived a successful life who has 
conformed to God's law and service. A serene and 
happy old age comes only to the Christian. 
"It is not death to close 
The eyes long dimmed by tears 
And wake in glorious repose 
To spend eternal years." 
I shall long remember your loved and honored 
father. Yours fraternally, 

foHN A. Maxwell. 

The Rev. McKinzie, pastor of the Meth- 
odist Episcopal church of Plymouth, then, 
after an eloquent tribute of love and respect, 
read the following letter from Rev. Lewis 
S. Smith, formerly pastor of the Methodist 
Episcopal church at Plymouth : 

Delphi, Ind., December 7, 1899. 
Rev. C. E. Davis, Bourbon, Ind. 

Dear Brother: — Announcement of the death of 
Rev. George H. Thayer at noon yesterday and of the 
funeral services under your charge tomorrow just now 
received. He was ready for this translation. He 
literally walked with God. He was venerable, alike 
for great age, for great intelligence, and for holy char- 
acter. He reveled in lofty thoughts. God made him 
perfect in love. His work was done and well done. 
I count it a privilege extraordinary to have known 
Rev. George H. Thayer for more than five years. I 
regard him the most unique character and one of the 
holiest men I have ever known. 

Give my sincere regards to his son and daughter 
and their families. 

Fraternally, 

Lewis S. Smith, 

Pastor M. E. Church. 

Rev. J. C. Breckenridge, pastor of the 
Presbyterian church at Bourbon, speaking 
of his great love for the deceased and the 
help he had received from him in the under- 
standing of many questions, referred to the 
breadth of his Christianity, which knew no 
sectarian bounds, but embraced all who tried 
to follow in the Master's footsteps. The 
Revs. C. A. Spider, W. H. Rittenhouse, J. 
X. Martin, A. J. Duryee and Charles Frib- 
ley then gave personal testimony of their 



228 



COMPHSDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



friendship and love for "Father Thayer." 
from whom each had received valuable ideas 
regarding the Christian faith and lessons of 
the Bible, and all gave expression of their 
expectancy to meet him and strike glad 
hands with him in the paradise of God. 

Prof. Bish, who led the choir in the 
beautiful and appropriate hymns which were 
sung, then spoke feelingly of his associa- 
tions with the deceased. A touching and 
significant feature was the large number of 
children who came to the house to call for 
the last time on "Grandpa Thayer." who 
was always their kind and loving friend. 
Among them were some little girls who 
brought flowers, as had been their custom 
during his illness. 

The casket was covered with beautiful 
flowers, tokens of love from relatives and 
friends. At the conclusion of the cere- 
monies at the church the interment took 
place in the Odd Fellows' cemetery, where 
the beautiful and impressive Masonic cere- 
monies were performed by Bourbon Lodge. 
A. F. & A. M.. assisted by Plymouth Kil- 
winning Lodge, A. F. & A. M.. Brother J. 
X. Wilson, of Plymouth, acting as master. 
It was a fitting end to a long, honorable and 
well rounded life on earth, which end here 
is but the beginning of an endless life of 
perfect bliss in the bright realms of the im- 
mortal souls of the blest, prepared from the 
foundation of the world for all the faithful 
\< '11' w ers of the Lamb. 



HOW WILLIAM DeFREES FRAZER. 

Hon. William DeFrees Frazer, one of 

the most substantial ami successful attorneys 
of m rthern Indiana, and now national bank 



examiner for this state, is an Indianian by 

birth and is one of Kosciusko county's most 
able native sons. He was born in the city 
of Warsaw on the 20th day of November, 
[849, and is a son of Judge James Somer- 
ville and Caroline (DeFrees) Frazer. The 
former was of Scotch descent, his ancestors 
having immigrated to this country during 
Colonial days, while the latter was descend- 
ed from French Huguenot ancestry. Judge 
James Somerville Frazer was a native of 
Pennsylvania and was born at Hollidays- 
burg July 17, 1824. In 1837 he accom- 
panied his parents to Wayne county. Indi- 
ana, and three years later entered the law- 
office of Hon. Moorman Way. of Winches- 
ter, where he began reading law. He had 
been given a good education by his parents 
and made rapid progress in his law studies. 
During the winter months he was engaged 
in teaching school, in which he was eminent- 
ly successful. In March, 1845. he was ad- 
mitted to the bar. though lacking nearly four 
months of having attained It's majority. 
The following month he opened an office in 
Warsaw, where he continued to reside and 
follow the practice of law during the re- 
mainder of his life. In politics he was in 
his early days a Whig, but when that party 
dissolved he became a Republican and al- 
ways took an active interest in the success 
of that party. Few men possessed to a 
greater degree than did Judge Frazer the 
quality of mind necessary to the making of 
a great judge, and he is one of the very few- 
men who have occupied a seat on the bench 
of our supreme court who have attained 
reputations worthy of note extending be- 
yond the Ci 'lilines of this state. His , .pinions 
arc models of judicial utterances, devoid <•( 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



229 



straining- to display erudition and breadth 
of reading. The copies of his opinions on 
file in the office of the clerk of the supreme 
court show that he prepared his opinions 
with the greatest of care and after most 
careful consideration. Though usually 
brief, they contained all that was essential 
to the disposal of the case. In 1847. 1848 
and 1854 he was elected a member of the 
lower house of the state legislature. The 
legislature of 1855 was confronted with a 
task of great importance. The school law- 
had been declared unconstitutional and the 
state was left without any provision for pub- 
lic schools. Judge Frazer took a great in- 
terest in public education and set sbout the 
drafting of a new school law. The result 
was the school law of 1855, which, though 
chipped and changed (often without proper 
consideration and attention to the existing 
law), is substantially the school law of the 
state today. In 1852 he served as prose- 
cuting attorney and ten years later was ap- 
pointed assessor of internal revenue, retir- 
ing from that office in 1864. The year he 
retired from this position he was elected 
judge of the supreme court, taking his seat 
January 3. 1865, and served until January 
3, 1 87 1. After retiring from the bench he 
was appointed by President Grant as one 
of the three commissioners under the treaty 
of the United States with Great Britain, 
dated May 8, 1871. By the terms of this 
treaty three commissioners, one for this 
country, one from Great Britain and one 
from Italy, were appointed to adjust claims 
against the United States held by English 
subjects and those held by citizens of the 
L nited States against Great Britain, arising 
out of the Civil war. The English c< >m- 
missioner was Right Honorable Russell 



Gurney and the Italian. Count Louis Corti. 
The claims passed upon amounted to at least 
two hundred and twenty million dollars and 
occupied the attention of the commissioners 
during the years 1873. ^74 and 1875. Dur- 
ing this period Judge Frazer resided in 
Washington, D. C. In 1879 the legislature 
of this state enacted a law calling for a re- 
vision of the statutes of the state and pro- 
viding for the appointment of three com- 
missioners for this purpose. It was the duty 
of these commissioners to prepare such laws 
as they deemed necessary and to present 
them to the legislature of 1881. The su- 
preme court appointed Hon. John H. Stot- 
zenberg, Hon. David Turpie and Judge 
Frazer. As the result of their labors we 
have the Revised Civil Code of 1881, the 
Revised Criminal Code and the Offense Act 
of the same year, together with many other 
statutes. After the legislature of 1881 ad- 
journed the commissioners prepared the re- 
vised statutes of 1881, the most satisfactory 
statutes this state has ever had. Judge 
Frazer gave the publication of these statutes 
his closest attention, spending many months 
at the capital in their prqjaration and giv- 
ing especial attention to the publication of 
the revision. In 1889 Judge Frazer was ap- 
pointed by Governor Hovey judge of the 
Kosciusko circuit court, and he served one 
year in this position. He was a charter 
member of Kosciusko Lodge Xo. 62, I. 
O. O. F., and always took an active part in 
lodge work. 

Judge Frazer and Miss Caroline De- 
Frees were united in marriage at Goshen, 
Indiana, on the 28th of October, 1848. Mrs. 
Frazer was a daughter of James DeFrees 
and a sister of John D. DeFrees, at one 
time printer for the L nited States, and of 



230 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



Joseph II. DeFrees, who at one time repre- 

ted the tenth district of Indiana in the 
United States congress. To Judge Frazer's 
union with Mis.~ DeFrees there were born 
seven children, one son and six daughters, 
as follows: William DeFrees, Harriet D.. 
.Martha S., Mar) C, Nellie R.. Fannie .and 
Jennie I). 

Hon. William DeFrees Frazer, the im- 
mediate subject of this review, was educated 
in the public and high schools of Warsaw 
and at the Wabash College, being graduated 
at the latter institution. Shortly afterward 
he became a law partner with his father, 
with whom he remained fur a number of 
years. From the very first success attended 
him. and his ability, industry and sterling 
integrity have brought to him a large 
clientele. In [88l he was elected to repre- 
sent his county in the suite legislature, and 
was re-elected in [883, making an excellent 
record during both terms a- one of the lead- 
ers of the Republican minority. In 1890 
he served as a member of the state com- 
mittee from the thirteenth district and 
proved an active and efficient organizer. In 
[898 and 1900 he served as chairman of 
the county committee and his comity never 
had a better organization than it had dur- 
ing that year. For years he has headed the 
Kosciusko county delegation to the state 
conventions of the Republican party, and 
has been influential in the making of nom- 
inations and platforms. In March. (899, 
he was appointed national hank examiner 
for the -tatc and is now administering the 
duties of that office with an efficienc) ami 
integrity that is winning for him golden 
opinions. He has been energetic in the de- 
velopment of his city, and for years has 



been president of the Warsaw Gas Light 
and ( a ike G impany. 

Mr. Frazer was felicitously united in 
marriage September 5. 1876, the lady 01 
choice being Miss Flora C. Ristine. of Craw- 
fordsville, this state, thus crowning a 
romance of his college life. Mrs. Frazer is 
a native of Indiana, having been born at 
Crawfordsville, Montgomery count). May 
d. [854. She is the daughter of I>enjamin 
T. and Florinda (Humphry) Ristine, na- 
tives of Kentucky and Connecticut, respect- 
ively, and very early pioneers of Mont- 
gomery county, this state. They were the 
parents of seven children, named as follows: 
Harlcy ( ... Albert L.. Theodore 11.. 
Humphry H.. Warren H.. Flora C. and 
Charles W. To the union of our subject 
and wife two sons were born, viz : James 
Ristine, born January 4. 1879, was a stu- 
dent at Wabash College and Bethel Military 
Academy of Virginia and recently gradu- 
ated from the Indiana Law School at In- 
dianapolis, and is now a law partner of his 
father. Theodore Clinton, whose birth oc- 
curred on the i^t day of December. [880, 
is now a student in Wabash College and will 
graduate there next year. Mrs. Frazer i> a 
faithful and consistent member of the Pres- 
byterian church, where Mr. Frazer is also 
an attendant and a liberal contributor. Hon- 
ored and respected by all who know him. 
Mr. Frazer has gone along quietly in the 
world, winning success and substantial hon- 
ors by the exercise of those qualities which' 
bring ntentment with achievement and 
leave tli 1 pain behind. I le is a charter mem- 
ber of the local lodge, Knights of Pythias, 
and also belongs to the Independent Order 
of Odd Fellows, in which organization he 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



231 



stands high. He is a polished gentleman 
and stands high in the esteem of all who 
know him. 



MARK SMITH. 



It is proper to judge of the success and 
the status of a man's life by the estimation 
in which he is held by his fellow citizens. 
The}- see him at his work, in his family 
circle, in his church, at his devotions, hear 
his views on public questions, observe the 
outcome of his o de of morals, witness how 
he conducts himself in all the relations of 
society and civilization and thus become 
competent to judge of his merits and de- 
merits. After a long course of years of 
such daily 1 ibservatii m it w < mid be 1 nit 1 if the 
question for his neighbors not to know his 
worth, because, as has been said, "Actions 
speak louder than words." In this county 
there is nothing heard concerning the sub- 
ject of this sketch but good words. He has 
passed so many years here that his worth 
is well known, but it will be of interest to 
run over the busy events of his life in these 
pages. He was burn in Medina county. 
Ohio, June 27. 1820. and is the child of 
Jonathan and Mercy ( Hudson) Smith. The 
Smith family of which he is a member, as 
is also the Hudson family, is of English de- 
scent. Both families came to this country 
man)- years ago ami settled in Ohio>. J< ma- 
than Smith and Mercy Hudson met in Ohio 
and were married there. They came to 
Kosciusko county, Indiana, in 1843 an d set ~ 
tied m this township on the farm where 
Mark Smith now resides. It consisted of 
one hundred and sixty acres, for which they 
paid four hundred dollars. The land at that 



time was covered with a dense forest of 
beech, oak. walnut, hickory, etc., all of 
which had to be removed before a crop 
could be raised thereon. At that time the 
country was so wild that wolves and other 
dangerous animals roamed through the tim- 
ber and fell upon such animal- as sheep, 
calves, etc., and devoured them, causing 
great destruction in a single night. Stock 
had to be guarded at first or until strong 
sheds and yards could be built for them. 
When these pioneers first came there was 
111 it a stick cut on the place. At the start 
they were obliged to remain at the home of 
Mark Smith, Sr., an uncle of the subject, 
until a rude log cabin could be built. A 
small clearing was made, a log cabin erected 
and a small crop of corn was planted. The 
father was a blacksmith by trade. In the 
fall of 1847 ' le was taken sick and died, 
ami the responsibility was thus largely 
thrown upon the subject. The latter bought 
tlie farm and began to work out by the 
month to pay for it. At that time hogs 
were worth' about two cents per pound and 
other things in proportion. So the payment 
was a si. nv process, but was accomplished in 
the course of time. Mr. Smith has always 
been closely identified with his business and 
has made it his duty ti 1 make the most of life 

I and of, his opportunities. He is now past 
seventy-five years of age and realizes that 

■ the span of his life is drawing to its close. 

! He is one of three boys and three girls born 
to his parents, as follows: Julia M., who 

j became the wife of Asa Dancer, both de- 
ceased: Mark, subject: Fannie, who became 

I the wife of Joseph Reed and is deceased; 
Sarah B.. who wedded Joseph G. Higgins 
and is deceased; Jonathan, who married 
Laviua Hurlbert and lives in Arkansas; 



232 



iOMPEXDICM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



Henry (i., deceased*, who married Lucy Hill 
and lived in Arizona. Mark Smith was 
married. October 12. 1850. to Miss Nancy 
Garvin, and has five children, as follows : 
Stearns E.. horn in 1X51. married Miss 
Lucy Euer and lives in Texas: Arthur, horn 
in 1859, married Miss Semantha Harrold 
and lives with his father; Jonathan, born in 
iN(>4. married Miss Clora Mattox and re- 
sides in this township. Mrs. Smith dying 
June 12. [864, Mr. Smith married a second 
time, in 1865. this time to Nancy Liggett. 
There has been no issue to this marriage. 
Mr. Smith is one of the most prominent men 
in this part of the county. He is well 
known and has the highest respect of every 
one who knows him. He has been a mem- 
ber of the Baptist church for sixty-eight 
vears. He is a Republican. He is one of 
the old pioneers who are fast disappearing, 
and his good name and honesty are above 
question. . 



WILLIAM STOUT. 

The best farmers of the present day do 
not confine their whole time and attention 
to the cultivation of the soil, but vary their 
operations by raising stock of the better 
grades for the market and for sale to other 
farmers. The rearing of fancy stock, or of 
stock for the market only, may be made 
very profitable by the farmer who will take 
the time to study the stock question as it 
deserves. It is easy to obtain from the gO\ 
eminent the reports of the experts whose 
business it is to investigate every phasi 
the stock question, with unlimited means at 
hand to experiment with. The result of 
these experiments should be known to every 
farmer. It would he worth a great ileal to 



him. fi r such experiments amount to what 
is the same as his own experiments through 
many years and with the expenditure of a 
large sum of money. But many farmers and 
stock raisers have grown up in the rearing 
1 f stock and know as much or more than 
the experts. One of these farmers is the 
subject of this memoir. He was born in 
Licking county, Ohio, June 13, 1856. and is 
the son of Christian and Sarah (Haas) 
Stout. The father. Christian, was a native 
of Pennsylvania, was of Germanic descent, 
and came to Ohio with his father when he 
was a boy. The grandfather was a farmer 
and young Christian was reared to that hon- 
orable occupation. He passed through the 
usual experiences of pioneer days, going in 
the winter time to the old subscription 
schools and working hard during the sum- 
mers in the forests and on the farm. In 
early life he married Miss Sarah Haas, who 
was a native of Ohio, and to this marriage 
were born six children: Adam, who wedded 
Sarah Blue and is the owner of the Com- 
mercial Bank, of Silver Lake, Indiana: 
Amanda, who became the wife of William 
Whitterberger, and now lives in Seward 
township: Marilda. who died when a young 
"•irl : Elizabeth, whi 1 wedded William Haines 

o 

and resides in this township; William, sub- 
ject : Rosella M.. who died at the age of five 
vears. Soon after his marriage Christian 
Stout moved from Ohio to Wabash county 

and rented a farm for a few years. While 
thus engaged his wife died and he soon 
afterward married again. About this time 
( [868) also he bought a farm in this coun- 
ty, and upon this he passed the remainder 
of his days. He was a man who possessed 
many admirable traits of character and was 
highly esteemed by all who knew him. For 



COMPENDIUM OF- BIOGRAPHY. 



233 



many rears prior to his death he had been 
a member of the Lutheran church. He was 
prominent in local affairs affecting the wel- 
fare of tbe community, and was a Demo- 
crat in politics. He died well advanced in 
years and in honors in 1896, being yet sur- 
vived by his widow. 

William Stout remained at home with 
his parents until he attained the age of 
twenty-one years. He received a fair edu- 
cation and learned the art of farming in all 
its best phases. In the spring of 1882 he 
was united in marriage with Miss Mary 
Loop, who was born October 12, 1858, the 
daughter of Moses and Jane (Sands) Loop. 
Her parents were among the pioneers, hav- 
ing come to this county from Ohio at a very 
early day, and were most estimable people. 
To the subject's marriage were born these 
children : Elsie M., born Sq)tember 7, 
1884: Roswell, born July 17, 1886; Walter 
M., born March 11, 1889; and Wilber, born 
March 28, 1894. Soon after his marriage 
subject moved to his present farm, where 
he has resided continuously since. He is an 
expert stock dealer and learned the business 
from actual and practical experience with 
stock. It may be said that he makes the 
most of his money in that line. He is well- 
to-do and is probably the leading stock man 
of the southern part of the county, certainly 
so far as knowledge of the subject is con- 
cerned. In politics he is a Democrat and 
takes a deep interest in the success of his 
party. He is a member of the advisory 
board of this township, has served as dele- 
gate of his party in the county conventions 
and was once a state delegate. He has re- 
fused small local political honors. The fam- 
ily is well known and respected by every- 
body. 



ALBERT MAGEE. 

The methods of making money by the 
farmer are not confined to the cultivation 
of the soil merely, nor to the rearing of su- 
perior grades of stock, although both of 
these are of the first importance. Very 
often an excellent opportunity is offered to 
make several hundred dollars, or even sev- 
eral thousand dollars, in one transaction by 
the judicious buying and selling of other 
farms. But in order that the farmer may 
do this it will be necessary for him to keep 
a good bank account, so as to be able to buy 
on short notice some farm that is offered at 
a sacrifice, which quite often occurs. The 
farmer of large means can do this without 
much trouble, but the small ones must keep 
back near the shore. One of the most pro- 
gressive farmers of this county is the sub- 
ject of this memorial. 

Albert Magee was born February 13, 
1866, and is the son of John W. and Anna 
(Abbey) Magee. The Magee family is of 
Scotch descent, and numbers among its 
members some of the most distinguished 
citizens of the country. Senator Magee, of 
Pittsburg, recently deceased, was a distant 
member of this family. The immediate an- 
cestors of subject emigrated from Scotland 
and settled in New York state and followed 
the occupation of farming there. John Ma- 
gee, the grandfather of subject, came from 
Xew York to Ohio at an early day and pur- 
sued the occupation of farming, and in con- 
nection with the same plied the carpenter's 
trade. He was a man of excellent reputa- 
tion and passed the remainder of his life in 
Ohio. The Abbey family came many years 
ago from England and settled in Ohio, and 
there Anna Abbey met John W. Magee and 



234 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



married him. Two years after their mar- 
riage, desiring to better their condition in 
point of this world's goodSj they cam:- to 
this county and settled on section 3, Clay 
township, where Mr. Magee bought one 
hundred and sixty acres of land and beg 
to farm the same. After living there many 
years he mi ved t" Warsaw, where he now 
resides. John W. Magee was married twice. 
first i" Miss Anna Abbey, a- before stated, 
and to thi- marriage the following children 
were horn: Nettie, deceased; George, who 
married Miss Alice Ingalls and resides in 
Elkhart, Indiana; Frank, who wedded Miss 
Mary Mayers and lives in Wayne township; 
William W.. who married Miss Jennie Wil- 
trout and resides in Wayne township, served 
four years a- treasurer of tin.- county, a 
most signal honor to him and hi- family; 
Mertie. the wife of John Kelley. lives in 
Wayne town-hip; Albert, subject; Delia. 
deceased. His first wife having died. Mr. 
.Magee married, two years afterward, or in 
[880, Mi-- Mar) Manner, and by her has 
the following children: Nellie i> unmarried 
and live- at home; Herbert, deceased; 
1 Ilanche 1- unmarried and lives with her par- 
m Warsaw. 
Albert Magee grew up on his father's 
farm and received the education afforded 
by the schools of the neighborhood, finishing 
hi- education at the schools of Warsaw. He 
taught one term in this county. In 1889 
he married Miss Lou Barr, daughter of 
James and Julia (Funk) Barr, her birth 
having occurred July 11. [865. I >ne child 
was born to this marriage, Leone, born N< - 
vembcr m. [898. Mrs. Magee's ancestors 
came originallj from the Emerald Isle. She 
and her husband are member- of the Meth- 
odist Episcopal church. Mr. Magee believes 



in the principles of the party which enrolled 
among its standard bearer- such men as 
Abraham Lincoln. Ulysses S. Grant, James 
A. Garfield, Benjamin Harrison, James G. 
Blaine and William McKinley. He takes an 
active and intelligent interest in local pol- 
ities particularly, and in national politics 
generally. All the members of this well- 
known family are stanch Republicans, and 
are so from mi tives of high principle. The 
subject and his wife possess the highest re- 
spect of all who have the pleasure of their 
acquaintance. 



ELIJAH HAYS. 



ne of the wealthiest men of n iday who 

have their home- in Warsaw, Iv sciusko 

county. Indiana, came here in very moder- 

circumstances, a- far a- tin- world's 

ds are concerned, and those who came 

earliest were generally the \ rest, but by 

their -kill in their special callings and by 
their frugality and industry not only aided 
to build up the town and county, but suc- 
ceeded in making for themselves compe- 
tences that enabled them before many Near- 
had passed to live in ease with little or no 
further care or labor. Of these fortunate 
men Elijah lla\ . and he i- the only 

man now living in Warsaw who was in 
business here in [843. Mr Hays arrived 
here June 2, of that year, which was his 
twenty-fourth birthday, and having here 
-oiiK relative- who had preceded him. he 
was not altogether among strangers. 

Elijah Hay- wa- born at York. Penn- 
sylvania, June _'. [819, and when two year- 
old was taken to Wayne count v. Ohio, by 



Ji 



. v,; 1 




Gi/^a/c ■ y^-cf^j 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



235 



his uncle, Andrew Yocum, who lived at Mill- 
brook, six miles south of Wooster. Robert 
Hays, the father of Elijah, died in Pennsyl- 
vania when the latter was of the age just 
mentioned. Mrs. Elizabeth (Yocum) Hays, 
mother of Elijah, was left with five chil- 
dren when Mr. Hays died, of which five 
there were three born of a former husband, 
a Mr. Nichols, Elijah was the elder of the 
two by the second marriage, and Joel, the 
\ ■' lunger, was but an infant in arms at the 
death of his father. Two years after the ar- 
rival of Andrew Yocum and the child Elijah 
at Millbrook, John Yocum. maternal grand- 
father of Elijah, and his daughter, Mrs. 
Hays, mother of Elijah, also reached Ohio' 
and settled at Waynesboro, Wayne county. 
When six years old Elijah Hays was re- 
turned to his mother, and later went to live 
with this half-sister and her husband. Mr. 
and Mrs. Thomas Boydston, who resided at 
Cedar Valley, Ohio. Mr. Boydston later 
became a representative in the Indiana state 
legislature from Kosciusko county. He 
was reared to farming, but afterwards be- 
came a manufacturer of woolen goods. 

In 1836, when seventeen years old. Eli- 
jah Hays went out to work en a farm fur a 
short time and was then apprenticed to 
Pembertmi Pancoast. at Congress, Wayne 
county, ( >hi". to learn blacksmithing. He 
served three years and one month and fi r 
his services received his board and one hun- 
dred dollars, together with three months' 
schooling after having learned the trade, but 
was obliged to pa}" tor his clothing. At the 
end of his apprenticeship he was the owner 
of fifty dollars, besides a sound knowledge 
of blacksmithing. and at once set up a shop 
close to the mill of his brother-in-law, 
Boydston, conducted it one year and saved 

14 



three hundred dollars in cash. He had long 
desired to secure an education, and so went 
to Norwalk, Ohio, secured a room in the 
Methodist Episcopal Seminary building, 
brought in his wood and cooked his food 
himself, and purposed to depend on his trade 
for his expenses while learning geography, 
arithmetic, grammar, natural philosophy and 
chemistry, of all of which he in due time 
acquired a fair knowledge. 

Meantime, in the fall of 1X42, Thomas 
Boydston, the brother-in-law of Mr. Havs, 
had come to Kosciusko county, had first lo- 
cated at Leesburg and then removed to 
Webster, where he operated a saw and grist- 
mill until 1S49, when he went to California, 
and three years later returned to Webster, 
where he passed the remainder of his life, 
dying in i860 when he was about sixty 
years old and while a member of the state 
legislature. 

In 1843 Elijah Hays and his uncle, Joel 
Fisk, decided to follow Mr. Boydston to 
Kosciuski ) ci unity and reached Leesburg in 
a two-horse wagon in June, 1843. -^ ir - Fisk 
purchased land just north of Centre Lake, 
cleared up a farm and lived upon it a num- 
ber of years, when he removed to Green- 
castle. Indiana, that he might give his son 
better educational advantages. He had 
served as township trustee and died at that 
city when about sixty years old. The son 
of Joel Fisk, alluded to above, was grad- 
uated from the Depauw University, and on 
returning to Kosciusko county sold the old 
homestead and located in Franklin township. 
He later enlisted in the Union army and it 
is supposed that he sacrificed his life in his 
country's cause, as he was never afterwards 
heard from. 

Elijah Hays had sold his tools in Ohic 



236 



COMPEXniLWI OF BIOGRAPHY 



on coming to Kosciusko county. Indiana, 
;m<l at Warsaw arranged with a gunsmith. 
by the name of Fleming, to work at the lat- 
ter'-- forge ami to use the latter' s tools and 
vice for the time being. Business opened 
Up well and in about a year Mr. Hays 
started a shop of his own on lot 100. where 
the Hays House now- stands, and there he 
continued at his trade for fourteen years. 
Trade in those days was conducted upon 
different principles or on different plans 
from what it is now. Horseshoe nails were 
made by the user himself, Mr. Hays worked 
from four A. M. until nine P. M., mer- 
chant- trusted their customers for twelve 
month- or longer, and Mr. Hay- would 
make wagons in payment for land, and was 
once offered the lot where the Phillips store 
now stands for a seventy-five-dollar wagon. 
Finally Mr. Hays sold his blacksmithing 
tools and engaged in the dry goods husi- 
ne-- iii partnership with Joseph Funk, now 
deceased. The new firm erected a -tore 
which they called the Crystal Palace, on the 
site where White'- restaurant now stands, 
and employed five or six clerks, a large force 
for those day-. The firm did a credit trade, 
and a; the close of about two year- dis- 
covered that they were about ten thousand 
dollar- in debt. The firm then dissolved ami 
Mi'. 1 l.i\ - a- hi- -hare of the assets accepted 
a farm in Franklin township and also some 
business lots and the book accounts, hut als< 
assumed the debts due by the concern, and 
it took him the next three years to adjust 
affairs. For nine years he owned the farm 
and did general farming and stock raising, 
and die la-t year of his occupancy -old wheat 
at two dollars per bushel and cleared four- 
teen hundred dollars on grain and -took. 
Eventually he sold his farm and settled on 



another ea-t of Warsaw, which he had pur- 
chased previously and on which he resided 
several years, then gave it to a 1111--1 
society. About [887 Mr. Hays returned to 
Warsaw and. in partnership with Andrew 
Poe, engaged in the drug trade, hut in the 
meantime continued to speculate in real es- 
tate in Kosciusko county, taking unim- 
proved land- and even improved farms 
when he saw a bargain. 

Until [872 Mr. Hays was a Whig and 
a Republican, hut when Horace ( ireeley, 
whom he had always admired, was nomi- 
nated for the presidency of the United 
States by the Democratic party, he voted the 
ticket headed by Greeley and Brown. He 
was in favor of the colonization of Africans 
under a protectorate of the United States 
government, and had become disgruntled 
with the Republican party when it brought 
the slavery question before the legislature 
instead of laying it before the people. Al- 
though he takes a lively interest in public 
affairs, he has never sought an office for 
himself. 

Mr. Hays joined the Methodist Episco- 
pal church in Warsaw about 1*44. and on 
finding that he was prospering financially he 
felt it to he his duty to his Maker to keep 
only sufficient money for his actual needs 
and to make good use of his surplus. He 
calculated that ten thousand dollar- ought 
to he enough for any one person and thai 
any surplus should he expended for mis- 
sionary purposes and for extending the in- 
fluences of Christianity into heathen lands, 
and for that reason became active in mis- 
sionary work. In [887 he donated to the 
General Methodist Missionary Society real 
e-iate valued at upward- of one hundred 
thousand dollar 



an agent 1 f the si ciety. in 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



237 



the person of Joseph Baker, acting as trustee 
and seeing to it that the income is properly 
handled. 

For himself Air. Hays has simply re- 
tained a life lease on his home and some 
other property, which nets him an annuity 
of about fifteen hundred dollars. Mr. Hays 
has also donated considerable cash to the 
same society, and in 1901 donated to the 
North Indiana Methodist Conference a home 
for superannuated and worn-out ministers 
of the church, this donation amounting to 
five thousand, four hundred and twenty- 
nine dollars and thirty-four cents, including 
two lots in Winona Park, on which is a 
building twenty-eight by sixty-two feet, 
three stories and basement in height, and 
surrounded with verandas. This home was 
completed by Mr. Hays before the donation 
was made, being built in the winter of 1900. 
It bears the name of the Hays Memorial 
Building, is under the control of a board of 
managers and yields a handsome income. 
hxe hundred dollars of which is included or 
devoted to> the annuity of fifteen hundred 
dollars already alluded to as reserved for 
Mr. Hays. 

In 1887 Mr. Hays had been left with 
but a few thousand dollars, but with natural 
business sagacity he resumed trading and 
recovered all he had lost and after expending 
the amounts already mentioned and much 
more in benificencies and charities never to 
be known, he is still worth at least thirty 
thousand dollars. No words at the com- 
mand of the writer can express an adequate 
idea of the estimation in which such a man 
as Elijah Hays should be held by the peo- 
ple of Warsaw and Kosciusko county, and 
they themselves fall short in their endeavors 
to express what they feel in this respect. 



Mr. Hays is also a natural genius and a 
skillful inventor, being the patentee of sev- 
eral valuable inventions, among which are 
vehicle brakes, fence posts, nut locks, car 
j couplings and two different horse detachers. 
Mr. Hays was united in the holy bonds 
of matrimony, six miles east of Warsaw, 
November 4. [846, with Miss Mary S. Stin- 
son, a native of Pike county. Ohio, and a 
daughter of Jacob and Sarah ( Wilson) 
Stinson, but the only child born to this con- 
genial union died in infancy. Mr. Hays is 
a strong advocate of temperance, but be- 
longs to no secret society, being a strict 
Methodist and being well content with the 
society and companionship of his brethren 
in the church. 



HON. LEMUEL W. ROYSE. 

Hon. Lemuel Willard Royse, senior 
member of the well-known and popular law 
firm of Royse & Shane, Warsaw, Indiana, is 
a native son of Indiana and was born in 
Kosciusko count}-, near the village of Pierce- 
ton, Washington township, on the 19th day 
of January, 1847. His father, George W. 
A. Royse, was a native of Xew Hamp- 
shire, and his mother, Xancy (Chaplin) 
Royse. was born near the Bennington battle- 
ground, in the state of Vermont. The elder 
Royse was a blacksmith by trade ; he mar- 
ried Miss Chaplin in Wood county, Ohio, 
in 1833. and the same year located in Kosci- 
usko county, Indiana, subsequently, about 
1853, changing his abode to Larwell, Whit- 
ley county, this state, where his death oc- 
curred in 1859. After the death of his fa- 
ther Lemuel went to live with a farmer in 



238 



C0MPEXD1UM OF BIOGRAPHY 



Whitley county, for whom lie worked until 
sixteen years of age. devoting his earnings 
the meanwhile ti i the sup])' >rt of his w id< iwed 
motliCT and the family. He attended pub- 
lic school in the neighborh 1. also pur- 
sued his studies at home and at the age oi 
eighteen began teaching. He continued ed- 
ucational work eight consecutive winters. 
working on the farm in the summers, and 
it was while thus engaged that he began 
reading law. in the spring of [872 he en- 
tered the law office of Frazer & Encell, of 
Warsaw, where he remained two summers, 
being admitted to the liar in September, 
1873. The following summer he began the 
practice of his profession at Warsaw, and 
subsequently, 1875, formed a partner-hip 
with Edgar Haymond, which lasted until 
the latter gentleman's election t" the judge- 
ship of the thirty-third judicial circuit in 
[890. In the year [876 Mr. Royse was 
elected prosecuting attorney for the circuit 
composed of Kosciusko and Whitley coun- 
ties and discharged the duties of the posi- 
tion in a manner which added greatly to his 
reputation as an able and painstaking law- 
yer, lie was untiring in his efforts to con- 
serve the interests of law and order, and 
during his incumbency many offenders were 
brought to the bar of justice and not a few 
criminals sent to the state prison. In the 
month of May. 1SS5. he was further hon- 
ored b\ being chosen mayor of Warsaw, 
which office he filled three successive terms. 
having been re-elected in 1887 and again in 
[889. As tlie city's chief executive he 
proved both capable and popular, serving the 
people faithfully and sparing no pains to 
promote all interests pertaining to the g< 
of the municipality. For a number of year- 
Mr. Royse has been one of the Republican 



leaders f northern Indiana, and it was in 
recognition of efficient political services, as 
well as on account of his eminent fitness for 
the position, that he was nominated and 
triumphantly elected in 1894 to represent 
the thirteenth congressional district in the 
lower h( use of the national legislature. He 
received at this election a plurality of four 
thousand, one hundred ami forty-one votes, 
a fact which attests his popularity with the 
people, and his course as congressman fully 
justified his constituents in the wisdom 
their chi lice. His career as a member ( if that 
august body is replete with duty ably and 
faithfully performed, he having taken an 
active part in the public discussion and de- 
liberations on the door, besidtes making his 
influence felt in the several committees on 
which he served. Mr. Royse was a member 
1 I the Republican state central committee 
from [886 to [890 inclusive, and also served 
as a delegate to the national convention at 
Minneapolis, which nominated Benjamin 
Harrison the second time for the presidency. 
He has long been a potential factor in state 
P litics and in matters local has been a leader 
and trusted adviser for many years, much of 
the success of the partv in Kosciusko county 
and throughout the thirteenth district being 
directly attributable to his well-conceived 
and splendidly executed plan-. lie is an 
effective campaigner and while energetic 
and untiring in promoting the interests of 
the cause he represents is honorable in his 
methods, never resorting to the wile- of the 
professional partisan nor making use of 
anything savoring in the least of disreput- 
able practice. 

A- a lawyer Mr. Royse evince- a famili- 
arity with legal principles and a ready per- 
ceptii n of fact-, together with the ability to 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



239 



apply the one to the other, which has won 
him the reputation of a sound and safe prac- 
titioner. Years of conscientious work have 
brought with them not only increase of 
practice and reputation, but also that growth 
in legal knowledge and that wide and ac- 
curate judgment the possession of which 
constitutes marked excellence in the profes- 
sion. In the trial of cases he is uniformly 
courteous to court and opposing counsel, 
caring little for display, never losing a point 
for the purpose of creating a favorable im- 
pression, but seeking to impress the jury 
rather by weight of facts in his favor and by 
clear, logical argument than by appeal to 
passion or prejudice. In discussions of the 
principles of law he is noted for clearness 
of statement and candor: he seeks faithfully 
for firm ground and having once found it 
nothing can drive him from his position. 
His zeal for a client never leads him to urge 
an argument which in his judgment is not in 
harmony with the law. and in all the import- 
ant litigation with which he has been con- 
nected no one has ever charged him with 
anything calculated to bring discredit upon 
himself or cast a reflection upon his profes- 
sion. By a straightforward, honorable 
course he has built up a large and lucrative 
legal business and financially has been suc- 
cessful far beyond the average of his calling. 
His life affords a splendid example of what 
an ■American youth, plentifully endowed 
with good common sense, energy and de- 
termination, may accomplish when directed 
and controlled by earnest moral principles. 
He has made for himself a permanent place 
in the history of his county and state and 
stands to-day among Indiana's broad- 
minded, successful, self-made men. Since 
1898 the subject has been associated in the 



practice of law with Bertram Shane, Esq., 
the partnership being recognized as one of 
the strongest, safest, as well as one of the 
most popular and successful legal firms in 
the northern part of the state. The names 
of these two gentlemen are generally found 
in connection with all important cases tried 
in the courts of Kosciusko county, and their 
well-known abilities have caused their serv- 
ices to be utilized at many other than their 
own bar. 

Mr. Royse is a member of the Independ- 
ent Order of Odd Fellows, having passed 
all the chairs in the local lodge to which he 
belongs. He is also a member of the Im- 
proved Order of Red Men and the Knights 
of Pythias. He was happily married on the 
10th day of July, 188.3, to ^ is s Bella Mc- 
Intyre, of Hillsdale, Michigan, a union re- 
sulting in the birth of one son, James, who 
died in childhood. 



EDSOX B. SARBER. 

Edson B. Sarher, the son of Thomas B. 
and Martha A. (Timmons) Sarber, was 
born in Allen county, Indiana, March 11, 
1864. The Sarber family are of German 
descent, two boys. Andrew and John, hav- 
ing emigrated from Germany to America 
about the year 1775. The cause of Amer- 
ican independence enlisted the sympathy of 
these young men and both became soldiers 
in the Revolutionary war. After the war 
closed they settled in Pennsylvania and Ed- 
son B. and his paternal ancestry are de- 
scendants of Andrew. Andrew was married 
in Pennsylvania and to him were born five 
children, Adam, Christian, John, Hannah 
and Susan. 



240 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



Adam Surlier was the great-grandfather 
of the subject of this sketch. He was reared 
to manhood on a farm in Lucerne county, 
Pennsylvania, where he was married to 
Catherine Enslen in [803. They remained 
in their native state for a few years, but as 
Ohio offered advantages not found in Penn- 
sylvania tn those who desired to "lay up" 
something for their children, they gathered 
together their personal effects and with a 
yoke of oxen and in true pioneer style 
moved to Franklin county, Ohio. This wa- 
in 1812 and they had no sooner arrived in 
their new home than the father enlisted as a 
soldier in our second war for independence, 
or the war of [812. To Adam and Cath- 
erine Sarber nine children were born, name- 
1\ : Sarah, Abraham, George. Christian, 
Elizabeth, John, Hiram, Lucinda and Will- 
iam. With one exception (Lucinda, who 
died while young) the children all grew to 
manhood and womanhood. All became 
prosperous men and women, each accumu- 
lating a creditable fortune. Two of the 
children. Abraham and William, were teach- 
ers. William also practiced medicine and 
was ranked with the most successful of that 
professii in in his daw 

Abraham Sarber, the grandfather of 
Edson B., \\a- married to Louisa Hendren 
in Franklin county. Ohio, in 1828, and sub- 
sequently moved to Kosciusko county, In- 
diana, settling in Palestine in 1840. Kosci- 
usko county was then in its infancy, hence 
Abraham Sarber is ranked with the early 
pioneers 1 E the same, lie engaged in the 
milling business in Palestine, but soon sold 
his interest in this business and moved onto 
a farm in Harrison township. He taught 
successfully several terms ,,f school during 
the winter. By skillful and economical man- 



agement on the part "i both himself and 
wife they made for themselves a comfort- 
able home, besides aiding in a substantial 
manner each of their children. Eight chil- 
dren. William H.. Adam H.. Melissa, 
Amanda R., Mary L., Thomas B.. Dorothy 
P. and John F.. were born to this union. 
All received a fair education for the ad- 
vantages offered, six of the eight having 
taught school at some period of their life. 

Thomas 1!.. the father of the subject of 
this sketch, was born in Palestine, Kosci- 
usko county, Indiana, on October 4. 184-'. 
and with the exception of one year all his 
life has been spent in the county of his birth. 
With the exception of one year spent in the 
Warsaw public schools, his educational ad- 
vantages were limited to the country dis- 
tricts. He was united in marriage. May -'4. 
[863, to Martha A., daughter of William .\. 
and Catherine (Dunnuck) Timmons. The 
parents of Martha A. were of English de- 
scent, the ancestors of her father having set- 
tled in Delaware and those of her mother in 
Maryland in an early day. 

The first year after marriage was spent 
by Thomas Sarber and wife on a rented 
farm. From here they moved to Allen coun- 
ty, Indiana, where they remained one year. 
when they sold and moved back to Kosci- 
usko county, settling on the farm now 
owned by Rudolph Huffer north of Pales- 
tine. Here they remained one year, when 
they removed to the farm, then a densely 
timbered tract of laud, on which they still 
reside. With their own hands this primeval 
forest was transformed into a well cultivated 
farm. While they are not wealthy, if by 

wealthy we mean rich in the g Is of this 

world, yet they have all they need and just 
enough to look after to make life a pleasure 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



241 



instead of a task. Three children, Ed'son 
B.. Louisa C. (who died in infancy) and 
Andrew E. (whose biography appears else- 
where in this book), were born to this 
union. 

The following review of the life of the 
immediate subject. Edson B. Sarber, is, be- 
cause of its autobiographical nature, of es- 
pecial interest : 

"1 was two years old when my parents 
moved on the farm where they still reside. 
The house on the farm at that time and the 
one which we occupied for two and a half 
years was an old-fashioned double-log 
cabin, with a stick chimney at one end. We 
occupied one end of the building only and 
the roof on that portion was so full of holes 
that we were kept quite busy when it rained 
changing our own positions and the posi- 
tions of the beds to avoid being 'drowned 
out.' The old shell was also infested with 
rats, and we generally went to sleep with the 
dreadful thought that an ear or a portion of 
our nose would go to satisfy the appetite 
of one of these peskv creatures. 

"1 commenced going to school at the age 
of four years and attended all the schools in 
walking distance of our home until I was 
fourteen. By this I mean that when there 
was no school in my home district I was 
sent to another that was near enough for me 
to reach afoot. Between school terms 1 
helped my father on the farm. My work 
consisted principally of picking chunks and 
cutting the undergrowth in the strip of tim- 
ber which he expected to clear away the fol- 
lowing winter. 

"The next two years of my school life 
were spent in a graded school at Sevastopol, 
Indiana. 1 began teaching at the age of six- 
teen and taught every year after that for 



twenty-one years. But another little inci- 
dent of my school days at Sevastopol must 
not be overlooked, else this sketch would be 
incomplete. It was here that I became ac- 
quainted with Miss Ollie Rickel. daughter 
of George W. and Mary (Dunlap) Rickel, 
and — well, but this must not turn into a 
childish love story. Suffice it to say that 
on Sunday evening of September 16, 1883, 
before a few invited guests at the home 1 if 
Ollie's parents, we were united in marriage. 
If I can prove myself worthy of this noble 
woman, I will have realized the fondest hope 
of my life, and I must say further that the 
little success which I may have achieved is 
dne to the guidance of a kind father and 
mother and to the kind counsel of a true and 
devoted wife. 

"The most of the time since we were 
married has been spent on the farm, having 
moved to the one (a part of the old home- 
stead) on which we reside at present in 
1888. The summers of 1890 and 1891 were 
spent in the Northern Indiana Normal 
School at Valparaiso, Indiana, from the 
business department of which I graduated 
in 1891. The summers of 1899 and 1900 
were also spent in this institution doing 
work in the scientific course. 

"Thirteen of the twenty-one years of my 
teaching were spent in the country district 
schools and the remaining eight as prin- 
cipal of the Bnrket public schools. The first 
day I taught at Burket I enrolled seven 
pupils and the primary teacher enrolled 
thirty-five, but before the year closed we 
had succeeded in building up quite a respect- 
able attendance, and before the opening of 
our third year's work it became necessary 
to build an additional room and we con- 
fidently feel that the time is not far distant 



242 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



when a fourth room will he added and that 
Seward township will have a high school 
second to none, outside of the city of War- 
saw, in Kosciusko county. 

"1 was elected assessor of Seward town- 
ship by a majority of nine in 1894 and 
served for five years. In 1900 1 was elected 
to the office of trustee by a majority of 
thirty-eight. J had to resign my position as 
principal of the Burket schools, to which I 
must say I very reluctantly did, to assume 
the duties to which 1 had been elected. I 
feel keenly the responsibility placed upon 
me and my earnest desire is to so administer 
the duties of this office as to give no one 
cause to regret the trust he has reposed in 
me." 



WARDE AND TUCKER FAMILIES. 

Many families throughout the United 

State- (hiring the last forty years have gone 
to much trouble and expense to colled their 
records hack to the date of their first settle- 
ment, thus laying the foundation of a per- 
manent family tree in this country fin- the 
benefit and pleasure of all their descendants. 
There can he no doubt of the great import- 
ance of this step. One of these days, in the 
entailment of (.'state-, such a record will he 
invaluable to descendants. It will he found 
that those who do not possess such a record 
will not he able to establish their right- to 
valuable estates that have been -cut down 
the family line for many generation-. The 
compilation of such a record i- -imply a 
matter of -elf preservation for the descend- 
ants. And it is well, while the record 1- 
being made, for the family to record col- 
lateral branches of the family. In this mat- 



ter all should take deep interest and con- 
tribute to the collection of the record. Such 
has been the course taken by the family now 
under consideration. Captain Josiah Warde, 
who married Mi-- Sarah Goodale, came 
from England to the town of Henniker, 
Xew Hampshire, in 1704. where he became 
prominent. According to the old record-. 
he assisted in laying out public road- there 
and was the first sexton of the town. lie 
was al-o a member of the first church or- 
ganized, and was commissioned captain of 
the Eighth Company of the Fifteenth Regi- 
ment of state militia on March 1, 1774. He 
probably saw service in some of the early 
wars, particularly with the Indian-. Ik- 
died February 2~. 1795. His son. Jesse 
Warde. was horn June 8. 1702. and married 
Miss Susan Booth, of Xew Hampshire. He 
died August 10. 1 Sot), and his wife died 
September _»(>. 1X09. Their daughter Polly, 
who was horn March 10. 1800. married 
John Tucker in May. 1821. The father of 
John Tucker was Ezra Tucker, who mar- 
ried Miss Elizabeth Pressy and settled on 
the town site of Henniker. Xew Hampshire, 
in 1770. He had been a soldier in the 
French and Indian war. and when the Revo- 
lution broke out he at once espoused the 
cause of the colonists by entering the service. 
He became second lieutenant in Captain 
Emory's company of Colonel Baldwin's 
regiment and served in various departmei 
during the continuance of the struggle. He 
fought at the battle of White Plains. New 
York, October 28, 177''. and saw much 
other hard service. His death occurred 

October 26, 1804, and his wife pa--ed aw 
September _'_'. 1801. Horace Tucker is the 
son of John and Mary ( Warde) Tucker and 
wa- horn in Richland county, Ohio, Novem- 







fc/U$cu ^Ut<^e*__ 




#: 



S^T^tzdC^ (1/ K*~Oi 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



H3 



ber 8, 1825. His grandfather, Ezra Tuck- 
er, passed his days in New Hampshire, and 
to him were born five sons and one daugh- 
ter, as follows: Daniel. John, Ezra, Cyrus, 
David and Eliza. Of this family, Ezra 
Tucker became a soldier in the war of 181 2 ; 
John Tucker also enlisted and was mustered 
but was not called into the service. The 
latter became the father of our subject. He 
was reared on a farm in Xew Hampshire, 
and received a limited education in the early 
subscript.il m schools. He possessed a good 
mind and managed to educate himself to the 
extent that he could pass the recpuired ex- 
amination for teachers, then a function of 
the courts. About the year 1820 he came to 
Richland county, Ohio, walking the entire 
distance of about eight hundred miles. At 
that time Ohio was a wilderness, filled with 
a few straggling settlers, many wild animals 
and not a few Indians about as wild as the 
animals. The soil was covered with an im- 
mense forest, with scarcely a break from 
north to south or from east to west. But 
this did not daunt John Tucker, for he en- 
tered one hundred and sixty acres of govern- 
ment land in Monroe township, Richland 
county. He put up on this land at mice a 
small, rude log cabin, and remained there 
for about a year all alone, for he was a single 
man and his nearest neighbor lived four 
miles away. He cleared a small field and 
put in a small crop of potatoes, and some 
time the following year made the trip back- 
to New Hampshire, walking, as before, the 
entire distance. While there he married 
Miss Polly (or Mary) Warde, and soon 
afterward he and his wife and their few 
belongings, all in a one-horse wagon, start- 
ed for the Ohio wilderness. Reader, do you 
realize what it meant for this young - couple 



to thus start off into the wilderness, eight 
hundred miles distant, away from all their 
friends, to be gone a lifetime, probably 
never to see their friends again? Such a 
a trip meant a great deal to the man, but 
vastly more to the woman. It meant about 
the same as if at the present day a young 
couple should start for the heart of Africa. 
All ties of the past seemed blotted out. The 
yi lung couple must live absolutely for each 
other. On their way out they slept in their 
covered wagon, camped out for the nights 
and cooked their own food, and continued 
thus until they had arrived at their destina- 
tion. Horace Tucker has in his possession 
at the present day the skillet with which 
they fried their food on this long and event- 
ful trip. He has also a piece of his grand- 
mi ither*s wedding dress. It took them thir- 
ty-three days to make the trip, and the last 
six miles he had to clear the way with his 
ax to reach his log cabin with the wagon 
and horse. Upon their arrival they moved 
their few household goods into the little 
cabin, which he had erected on his previous 
trip, and thus their married life in the 
wilderness of Ohio began. They went to 
work resolutely to clear off the timber from 
the tract near the house, and in a few years 
the sunlight was let in on a considerable 
open tract. As the years passed the clear- 
ing grew, the rude log cabin was replaced 
with a larger and better one and a few more 
comforts were added to the pleasures of the 
couple. Still later a frame house was built. 
As the years rolled around little children be- 
gan to appear, so that it was not as lone- 
some as it was the first few years. Other 
settlers came in and soon a considerable 
settlement was formed in the woods. In 
the course of time seven children were born 



244 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



to them, as follows: One that died in in- 
fancy: Horace, subject; Aurelius, deceased, 

who married Miss Isabella Alexander, was 
a teacher and a man of mure than usual 
ability; Serena, who became the wife i I 
Francis Wager, lives in Cleveland, Ohio; 
lie is worth one hundred thousand dollars; 
Albert, who married and lives in Mentone, 
Indiana, is quite wealthy: Reguius, who 
wedded Miss Jane Bine and lives at Foun- 
tain I lead. Tennessee, is engaged exten- 
sively in the stock business; Livona, who 
became the wife of John Vandermark, is 
deceased. John Tucker and his son Horace 
came to Kosciusko county in 1840 for the 
purpose of inspecting the land and. if found 
satisfactory, of buying a tract. Horace 
selected and bought one hundred and sixty 
acres in sections 10 and _»o. Franklin town- 
ship. The father returned to Ohio, leaving 
Horace to clear a small opening, when 
he. too, returned to Ohio, walking the 
whole distance of two hundred miles, re- 
quiring about a week to do it. Horace re- 
mained in Ohio for some time, working on 
his father's farm until his marriage Jan- 
uary [3, 1S4S. to Miss Eliza Johnson, 
daughter of Francis and Anna (Fleming) 
Johnson. The Johnson family were origin- 
ally from Ireland. William Johnson, the 
grandfather of Mrs. Horace Tucker, came 
from Ireland to America immediately after 
his marriage. He settled in Pennsylvania, 
where the father of Mrs. Tucker was bom. 
(haiks Fleming, an uncle, was a soldier in 
the war of [812. Francis Johnson was a 
blacksmith and a sickle maker. He moved 
to Ohio, where he passed the remainder of 
his days. I le was prominent in his life time. 
serving as justice of the peace, etc. 1 le was 
a Democrat and a member of the I'resbv- 



terian church. To Horace and Eliza Tucker 
the following children were born: Albert 
L.„ born September [9, [849, who married 
Miss Elizabeth Bechtelheimer and now lives 

on section v }o. Franklin township. Upon 
the marriage of his children Horace Tucker 
has given each six thousand dollars, to 
which Albert has greatly added since his 
marriage. He now owns two hundred»and 
fifty acres of tine land in this township and 
has these children: Elmore. Effa D., Eda, 
hin, Roy, John. Millie. Frank C. and Unie. 
Rosella, born in December, 1853. became 
the wife of Jonathan Tinkey and resides in 
Seward township; they have three girls and 
ne boy: Laura Mertie. Aha Merva. Xellie 
\. and Horace Grover. Hollis ( '.. horn in 
February, 1857. married Xettie Alexander 
and lives in Franklin township: they have 
-ix children. Oren. Marion. Charles, Horace. 
Merlie and Erma. Horace Tucker and wife 
have nineteen grandchildren and nine great- 
grandchildren, and all of them live within 
sound of their grandfather's dinner bell, 
and very often avail themselves of its kindly 
invitation. The life of Mr. Tucker affords 
many interesting features. He began at the 
bottom on his land, which was at rirst cov- 
ered with heavy timber. He cleared much 
of it himself, but was at all times a hirer of 
labor and knew how to manage hired men. 
The first Spring he planted six acres of corn 
among the stumps. He broke the ground 
with a pair of runaway oxen belonging to 
some one else, and yoked them up and put 
them to work when they came to his barn 
for something to eat. Slowly he advanced 
and improved the place. In 1S71 he com- 
menced the erection of his present brick 
house, which was the first in the township 
to be supplied with steam heat. The house 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



245 



cost four thousand dollars, exclusive of his 
own work, which was considerable. He put 
up the first wind mill pump in the township 
and in 1874 he built his large barn, and at 
the present time his farm is one of the most 
attractive in the county. Mr. Tucker has 
shown great capacity to get ahead in the 
world. All told, he has made in his various 
business transactions about one hundred 
thousand dollars. Much of this large sum 
has been made in the rearing and marketing 
of live stuck, having for forty-two years 
made a specialty of this business. He was 
the first man to ship a car load of live stock 
from Warsaw in 1856. He handles high 
grade cattle and horses, and is an excellent 
judge of stock. He now has one hundred 
and twenty head of as fine steers as are to 
be found in this count}'. He is very liberal 
in his benefactions, contributing freely to 
all the churches in this portion of the county 
and assisting every worthy undertaking. 
He has given to his children about twenty- 
five thousand dollars. In politics he is a Re- 
publican and was a Whig before the Repub- 
lican party was formed. He has served as 
trustee of the township, and also as treas- 
urer, and has been mentioned in connection 
with the county commissionership. He has 
in one piece a tract of about one thousand 
acres of land and keeps about one hundred 
head of cattle the year round. He ships an- 
nually about one hundred head of swine. 
In 1900 he sold eight thousand dollars 
worth of fat and graded cattle. He and his 
wife are the most prominent people in this 
part of the county. Mr. Tucker is distin- 
guished for his upright conduct and steady 
habits, for his industry and intelligence, and 
for his sagacious business methods and high 
sense of honor. His long life and that of 



his good wife are filled with righteous deeds, 
so that in the future their children and chil- 
dren's children shall rise up and call them 
"blessed." 

Mr. Tucker has related several incidents 
concerning his early experiences in this 
county which are deemed worthy of mention 
here. Sugar maple trees were at that time 
quite plentiful and Mrs. Tucker has on her 
cook stove made enough maple sugar to last 
the family through an entire year. She 
manufactured the cloth for the family 
clothes, first cutting the wool from the sheep, 
then cording, spinning and weaving it into 
cloth. Many a time has Mr. Tucker been so 
busy clearing his land that be has had to 
burn the brush and, log heaps at night. The 
first table used in the home of this pioneer 
family was an ordinary goods box. This 
was superseded by a rude bench made of 
clapboards. Their bedstead was a four- 
inch stick laid at the extreme outer ends of 
shorter posts stuck horizontally into augur 
holes in the wall, and all covered with clap- 
boards on which to make the lied. Mr. 
Tucker was an expert user of the sickle and 
many times has reaped forty dozen of wheat 
in one day. He helped tend the first thresh- 
ing machine used in Richland county. Ohio. 
He has now in his home an old Seth Thomas 
clock which was brought from Richland 
county and is over sixty-five years old, and 
has also several old coverlets used in the 
pioneer days. In 1901 Mr. Tucker sold 
sixty-three walnut logs for the remarkable 
price of six thousand three hundred and 
thirty dollars. He has now in bis possession 
an old sheepskin parchment deed, dated July 
5, 18^7. and signed by President Martin 
Van Buren, and which is now highly valued 
by Mr. Tucker as a relic. 



246 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



HON. GEORGE MOON, Deceased. 

To write the personal record of men who 
have raided themselves from humble circum- 
stances to a position of responsibility and 
trust in a community is no ordinary pleas- 
ure. Self-made men. men who have 
achieved success by reason of their personal 
qualities and left the impress of their in- 
dividuality upon the business and growth of 

their place of residence and affect for g 1 

such institutions as are embraced within the 
sphere of their usefulness, unwittingly per- 
haps, built monuments more enduring than 
marble obelisk or granite shaft. ( )f such we 
have the unquestioned right to say belongs 
the gentleman whose name is well known 
throughout Kosciusko county and promi- 
nently associated with those whose reputa- 
tions and service exceed the boundaries of 
the state. Hon. George Moon, deceased. 

George Moon was born in county Lon- 
donderry, Ireland. July it. 1816. He was 
a lad of twenty years when, in [836, he left 
his native land and sought a home in the 
new world beyond the seas. Landing- in 
America, he made his way to Pennsylvania, 
where he remained for one year in the town 
of Mauch Chunk, and in April, 1837, joined 
the tide of emigration then rapidly setting 
toward the Western wilds beyond the Alle- 
ghauies. landing in Leesburg. Indiana. 
him Knowles then lived about three miles 
-nitli of Warsaw, and the subject hail 
known the family in Pennsylvania. Ed- 
ward Archibald, a cousin of George Moon, 
accompanied him to Indiana for the purpose 
of obtaining land. George went to Lees- 
burg and hired out at eight dollar- per 
month to b'hn I'.. Chapman, who owned a 



prairie farm, where he was employed in the 
laborious task of breaking sod land with 
live yoke of cattle. Here he remained 
six months, but was unable to procure land. 
Much sickness from fever and ague pre- 
vailed at that time, and it was not uncom- 
mon to find whole families stricken with 
that terrible malady. The families of a Mr. 
Fitch and a Mr. Dinky were sorely afflicted 
and out of the thirteen souls there were 
eleven deaths. The country was very flat 
and swampy and the few physicians were 
unable to successfully cope with the disease, 
then almost a scourge. Some went to La- 
fayette for care. In 1839 Mr. Moon came 
to Warsaw, which was afterward his home 
until his death. Three years prior to this 
date the town was laid off and the following 
year. 1837, the first building was erected. 
Six families comprised the settlement in 
[839, and it was not until 1850 that the 
hamlet could boast of a population of two 
hundred and fifty. Mr. Moon taking the 
census. Hon. John B. Chapman, a lawyer, 
and at that time member of the legislature, 
named the county and selected the site for 
county seat, being the owner of one of the 
three eighties which it embraced, ami named 
the town Warsaw. The jail was a two- 
story log structure. There were no doors 
below and prisoners were let down into the 
lower room from the second story. The old 
frame court house stood where the Baptist 
church now stands. In the fall of 1838 Mr. 
Moon became a clerk in the store of Met- 
calfe Beck, a merchant of Leesburg. who 
shortly afterward set Moon up in business 
with a small st< ek of goods at Warsaw. 
Trade was light and the growth of the town 
was slow, lie -"Id g 1- in Warsaw for 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



M7 



about ten years, paying for them as fast as 
he could. His later purchases were made at 
Michigan City. 

Jonathan Moon, brother to our subject, 
was living in Mauch Chunk, Pennsylvania, 
having left Ireland six or seven years be- 
fore in company with his cousin Archibald, 
and in the fall of 1837 he came to Indiana. 
He had some money, bought eighty acres 
of laud, and Archibald entered a tract of one 
hundred and twenty acres six miles south of 
Warsaw. That winter Moon and Archibald 
went to Leesburg and engaged in general 
merchandising, continuing business until the 
former's death in 1854. He had accumu- 
lated a handsome property, about forty-five 
thousand dollars, and Archibald also became 
wealthy. Jonathan Moon left a family. 
Mrs. Alary (Moon) Cisney, Warsaw, be- 
ing the only child now in the county. His 
widow is now the wife of Thomas J. Chap- 
man, of Warsaw. 

Another brother of George Moon, Ed- 
ward, came to Indiana about eight years 
later and engaged in the drug business at 
Lee>burg. He became county treasurer, 
and subsequently engaged in merchandising, 
becoming well and favorably known as suc- 
cessful business man. His widow and two 
sons, John A. and Charles I!., are residents 
of Warsaw. George Moon, the subject, 
after selling- out in 1848, clerked for his 
brother in Leesburg. In 1852 he was elected 
to the office of county treasurer and was 
re-elected to a second term in 1854. An in- 
spection of the books by the commissioners 
found them not only well kept, but there 
was not an error therein. His memory was 
remarkably good and while not having the 
advantages of much schooling his retentive 
mind and close observation served him well. 



In 1856 he was elected to the lower house 
of the general assembly. Being an old-line 
Whig, he naturally gave his fealty to the 
then rising Republican party. He was chair- 
man of the first Republican convention and 
old Whig friends had placed him in nom- 
ination and elected him by a handsome ma- 
jority. Mr. Moon making no canvass for the 
office. He served one year in the house and 
was made chairman of the committee on 
ways and means, rendering valuable service 
through his ability to foresee events or 
analyze a measure presented to the commit- 
tee for its consideration. Retiring from the 
legislature at the close of his term, he be- 
came the agent at Warsaw of the Pittsburg, 
Fort Wayne & Chicago railway, and secured 
control of the warehi >use. holding the posi- 
tion for several years. In i860 he was sent 
as a delegate to the Republican national con- 
vention at Chicago as a Lincoln man. He 
and his colleague of this district were the 
only original Lincoln men at the first ses- 
sion. His personal preference was for Sew- 
ard, but feared he could not be elected and 
did feel that Lincoln was the then coming 
man. After the nomination he returned 
home and took an active part in the cam- 
paign. He chartered a special train for the 
grand rally held at Fort Wayne, using his 
personal means to defray the expense. Al- 
though handling large sums of money be- 
longing to the railroad, not a cent of it was 
used to conduct the canvass, but was bor- 
rowed from friends when necessary. He 
finally resigned his position with the rail- 
road, after the election. When hostilities 
commenced between the nojrth and south 
.Mr. Moon obtained a position under a per- 
sonal friend who was an army quartermas- 
ter, stationed in Kentucky, and was soon 



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COMPEXPIL'M OF BIOGRAPHY. 



249 



came a member of the grand lodge, and was 
ever active in the work of the order. He 
ranked as one of the oldest members of the 
1 rder in the state, and during his fifty-four 
5 of membership was never a delinquent. 
In Masonry he also reached an eminent po- 
sition. He was a Scottish Rite Mason, and 
for years was active in its good work. 

In 1841 Mr. Moon wedded Miss Sarah 
Elizabeth Graves, the ceremony being per- 
formed at Leesburg. She was born in 
Clarksburg. Virginia, and was a y< >ung girl 
when her parents moved to Indiana. Her 
brother. William C. Graves, was one of tht 
earliest attorneys of Warsaw and was coun- 
ty clerk for a number of years, and later a 
banker and merchant. Another brother, 
Thomas L. Graves, is a resident of Kendall- 
ville. After fifty-two years of married life 
the estimable wife and mother passed away. 
They were the parents of four children, 
three of whom grew to maturity: Nancy 
E.. who became the wife of Daniel S. Bitner, 
of Warsaw : Regina, deceased, who mar- 
ried William B. Funk : and George, who 
was deputy collector under his father in the 
internal revenue sendee, and now resides at 
Eagle River, Wisconsin. Few men live to 
attain as high a place in the esteem of the 
community in which they live as did George 
Moon, and his death, which occurred on the 
15th of April. 1902. was deeply mourned by 
all classes. 



WILLIAM HEISLER. 

In this country it is an easy matter for 
a stn >ng young man, one whose powers are 
unimpaired, to go out in the world and 
make a good living for himself, but it is 



not so easy for one to get on well in the 
world who has met with the misfortune of 
bodily infirmity. He is handicapped in the 
race of life and unless he excels in other 
directions — unless he possesses other su- 
perior qualities — his life is likely to be one 
of severe trials and exactions. But it is 
usually the case that when a person is thus 
limited in bis activities he more than makes 
up for it in a sharpening of other qualities, 
so that he is thus enabled in those direc- 
tions to surpass his fellows in those respects 
at least. This seems like an exemplification 
of the laws of compensation. If curbed in 
one direction, the energies take an unusual 
development in another. It would seem 
that this is the case in the development of 
the subject of this sketch, for although he 
has been handicapped for many years he has 
been unusually successful in the battle for a 
livelihood. He was born in Stark county, 
Ohio. July 6, 1845. and is the son of John 
and Mary ( Zeider ) Heisler, the father be- 
ing a native of Germany. When John 
Heisler was a young man he emigrated from 
Germany to America and settled in Stark 
county, Ohio. There he met Miss Mary 
Zeider. who had come from Germany to 
France with her parents when she was 
twelve years old and later had come to 
America and also settled in Stark county. 
In due time they were married. The par- 
ents of both were farmers and people of 
strict respectability. John Heisler was a 
o 11 »per by trade and worked at the same for 
many years in connection with his fanning 
operations. His farm was situated four 
miles from Massilon, Ohio, and there he re- 
sided until 1863 and then came to Kosci- 
usko county and died here. To himself and 
wife five children were born, as follows: 



2;o 



COMPEXPllM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



Catherine, deceased, who married John 
Byerly, was widowed and lived in Warsaw, 

Indiana: Pauline, who became the wife of 
Sylvester Kinsey, is also a widow and re- 
sides in Clay township; William, subject: 
John, who married Miss Catherine B 
and upon her death wedded again, lives in 
this c< unty; Emanuel resides in Hiawatha, 
Kansas, and is married. In [864 the father 
moved from Stark county and settled on sec- 
tion 6, Clay township, this county, buying 
tlie farm now 1 ccupied by the subject. 

William Heisler grew up on his father's 
farm and helped to clear off the timber and 
the thickets of brush. He remained at home 
until he readied manhood and received dur- 
ing that time a good education at the coun- 
try schools. Upon reaching his majority 
he became afflicted with the dreaded white 
-welling in one of his limbs, with the result 
that in the end it crippled him for life. 
Such an affliction would have put a damper 
on the spirits of almost any young man. but 
not so with the subject of this notice, lie 
determined to make the most of life, and ac- 
cordingly wooed and won Miss Mary 
Bules, whose parents were native- of Ger- 
many. Three children were born to this 
union, as follows: Lizzie, deceased; Win- 
field S.. born July 28, 1880, unmarried and 
at home: William M., unmarried and at 
home, was born April 28, [883. His first 
wife dying, Mr. Heisler afterward mar- 
ried Miss Ida Good, and by her has one 
child. Charles J., born July u. [900. At 
the time of his first marriage he had saved 
very little, owing to his unfortunate sick- 
-. but he put forth his best efforts and 
by good management succeeded in getting 
ahead and in time bought out the other heirs 
and now owns the "Id farm of one hundred 



and ten acres. Notwithstanding his lame- 
ness he has followed the plow many a day. 
He is prosperous and highly respected. He 

and wife are members of the Lutheran 
church and are prominent in all worthy re- 
ligious movements. He is a Democrat, takes 
a lively interest in all political affair- and is 
one of the leading citizens in this part 1 if the 
countv. 



ANDREW 1'. RUPE. 

It is proper that the descendants of the 
old settler-, those who cleared the land of 

its primitive w Is. should see that the 

doings of the early years are fittingly re- 
membered and recorded. It was -aid by 
1 ne 1 if the greate-t hi-ti irians that thi se who 
take no interest in the deeds of their an- 
cestors are not likely to do anything worthy 
ti > be remembered by their descendant-. 
Could the live- of the first settlers be fully 
and truthfully written what an interesting, 
thrilling and wonderful tale it would be. 
Think of the journey to the West, of the 
hardships of clearing the -nil and the pleas- 
ure of rearing the family. Think of the pio- 
neer gatherings, of the slim .ting matches, 
the old subscription schools, the first 
churches under the branches of the tr< 
the camp meetings, the famous "Id circuit 
riders, the husking matches, the coon, w 
fox and bear hunts with dug-, and then 
presume t" say that the old settlers did ii"t 
live happy live-. Such were the experiences 
of the subject of thi- sketch. He was l>orn 
in Carroll county. Ohio, May 22, [822, and 
i- the -on of Jacob and Martha (Price) 
Rupe. The father, when a boy, was brought 
i" America from Germany and first lived in 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



251 



Virginia. He worked at the carpenter trade, 
and continued thus employed until the sum- 
mer of 1836. Upon reaching maturity Jacob 
Rupe married Miss Martha Price, a native 
of Maryland, the marriage occurring in Vir- 
ginia and to them were born fifteen chil- 
dreu, eleven sons and four daughters, as 
follows: Samuel, who married Miss Maria 
Shinaburv and both are deceased ; Hannah, 
win 1 died when a small girl ; David, who 
married and lived in Ohio ; William, who 
married Miss Hannah Tussinger and lived 
in Missouri; Elnora, who became the wife 
of Edward Garrett and lived in Ohio; John, 
who married and is deceased; Mary A., who 
was the wife of David Dodd, lived in In- 
diana, and later in Iowa; Joseph, deceased, 
who was married four times; Cornelius mar- 
ried, lived in Michigan and died March 15. 
1897; Jacob, who died at the age of eighteen 
years: Sarah, who was crippled in early life 
and never married; Andrew P., subject; 
Michael, and two others. Andrew P. Rupe 
is the only representative of this large fam- 
ily now living and is nearly eighty years old. 
In the fall of 1836. when the subject was 
in his fifteenth year, he was brought by his 
parents from Richland county, Ohio, to 
Kosciusko county, Indiana, where the father 
had secured one hundred and seventy-two 
acres by trading his farm in Ohio* for the 
land in Seward township. At that time the 
country was new and wild game was abund- 
ant. Even the Indians were still here in 
considerable numbers. Amid these sur- 
roundings Andrew P. grew to manhood. 
At first they were the only white family in 
the township, and sometimes the Indians 
were anything but friendly. On one oc- 
casion several of them came to the Rupe 
house and seemed very angry about some- 

15 



thins;. After several hours of conference 
the family succeeded in pacifying them with 
pacific overtures and a square meal and they 
departed satisfied. Andrew, growing up 
among them, became familiar with their 
language and can talk some of it yet. He 
joined them in their games, sports and 
hunts, and in time became very expert in 
the use of the rifle. He became a skillful 
hunter and shot many deers and had more 
than one tussel with ones which he had 
wounded. He says that very few animals 
are as dangerous as a wounded deer. It 
charges upon the hunter and gores him to 
death in a twinkling unless he can manage 
to evade the infuriated animal. He had 
just such an experience and only barely es- 
caped with his life. He was very daring in 
his hunts and would attack any animal that 
roamed the dense forests and trust to his- 
skill and markmanship to get him out of the 
scrape. It is no doubt true that he has 
killed more wild game than any other man 
now living in the county. He was reared 
to hard work on the farm and in felling the 
heavy trees and burning the brush. His 
little education was secured at the old sub- 
scription schools. On October 5, 1847. he 
married Miss Barbara Shoemaker, wdiose 
people were also pioneers of this part of the 
county, having' emigrated here from Ohio. 
At the time of his marriage he had nothing 
but his wife, with the world before him, but 
neither feared the result. Seven children 
were born to this union, viz: Nancy A., 
who married twice, the second time to Levi 
Parish, of White Pigeon, Michigan; Eliza 
now lives in California; Arie is the wife of 
James Harris and lives in Marion, Indi- 
ana ; Lvdia, who married Aaron McCoy, 
lives in South Bend. Mr. Rupe's first wife 



252 



COMPEXDIL'M OF BIOGRAPHY. 



died April 24. i860, and he married Nancy 
J. Romine, who bore him twin boys. One 
of the.-e. C. C. Rupe, married Miss Anna 
Andrict and lives in this county. His sec- 
ond wife dying January 4. t86i, Mr. Rupe 
married Caroline !!. Hill. She died without 
issue, and he chose for his fourth wife Eliz- 
abeth Bently, to whom he was married Jan- 
uary 1. [878. She bore him one child, 
Willie, who 'lied aged seven weeks. Mrs. 
Rupe was born August 23, 1841, and was 
brought to this county in 1S52. 

Mr. Rupe now owns a total of over four 
hundred acre- of excellent land, acquired 
wholly by hi- . wn exertion- and good man- 
agement. Mrs. Kupe i- a member of the 
Christian church, and Mr. Rupe, though not 
a member, has been trustee and treasurer 
of Palestine Christian church for thirteen 
years. He is a member of the Lodge No. 
73. Warsaw, F. & A. M., having joined in 
[861. In politics he i- an ardent Democrat 
and wa- once earnestly solicited to run on 
his party ticket for sheriff, but declined the 
honor. He is a splendid specimen of the 
pioneer farmer and is spending his declin- 
ing days in happiness and peace after the 
tumult of a loner and active life. 



EDWARD G. BLACK. 

To the person traveling by railway 
across the state at this day it -eems almost 
incredible that only a little more than half 
a century ago almost every foot of land was 
covered with a dense forest through which 
the light of day rarely ever penetrated. But 
such was the fact. In a little more than half 
a centurv every root and branch has been 



removed, -tick by -tick, from the soil by 
innumerable hands. In fact the mosl of the 
timber was removed in considerably less 
than half a century. This would never have 
been done had it not been for the fertile 
soil beneath and the comfortable homes that 
awaited the efforts of the settlers. The task 
wa- a 1-Hi- one, but well repaid the settlers 
fur the trials and hard-hips. It was through 
such experiences that the subject of tins 
memorial passed, particularly in his early 
war-. His birth occurred in Prairie 1 
ship, Kosciusko county, Indiana. May 18. 
1851, and he is the son of Joseph and Susan 
(Richison) Black. The family of which 
the subject is an honorable member is of 
English descent. The grandfather resided in 
Virginia and followed the occupation of 
farming. His marriage occurred in that 
-tale and one of his sons was Joseph, the 
father of the subject. When Joseph was a 
small boy his father moved from Virginia 
to < 'hio. and there he grew up with the usual 
advantages afforded boys of that early 
period, his schooling being obtained at the 
pioneer subscription schools. Possessing by 
nature a good mind, he took to books and 
obtained a good education for that day. In 
an early day he became acquainted with the 
lady who afterward became his wife. They 
were married and their union was blessed 
with three sons and three daughters. Pre- 
vious to his marriage he traveled through 
the -tate of Indiana and all the Northwest, 
and while on this trip bought the land on 
which he afterward lived in this county, in 
Prairie township. Every font of it wa- cov- 
ered with heavy timber which had to be re- 
moved before the -oil could be cultivated. 
It was a task of immense magnitude, but 
had to be performed if the family wa- to 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



253 



si m the grain and reap the same from the 
sail beneath. Their trip from Ohio was 
made in a covered wagon through the dense 
woods and past the small clearings and the 
small fields of stumps. A rude log cabin 
was erected and in this their life began in 
the forests of the "Hoosier state." Ere 
long the sunlight was let in and the fields 
of wheat and corn took the place of the vir- 
gin forests. Their family comprised the 
following children : Clarinda, who married 
E. E. Hart and lives with her father in 
Prairie township, this county; Edward G., 
subject; Salem, who married Catherine 
Kimes and resides in this county; Sarah, 
who became the wife of William Boggus 
and lives in this county; Cynthia is unmar- 
ried and lives at home with her father ; 
James, who married Cassie Burkett, also 
lives in this county. 

. Edward G. Black remained on his fa- 
ther's farm until he attained the age of 
twenty-one years, securing in the meantime 
a good education at the public schools and 
learning during the summers what it was to 
work on a farm. Upon reaching his ma- 
jority be hired out to his father by the month 
and continued thus employed for the space 
of three years, saving up a snug sum of 
money in the meantime. April 4, 1878, he 
wedded Miss Mollie, daughter of George 
and Margaret (Barrick) Ritchie. Her birth 
occurred December 9, i860, she being of 
Germanic descent. She was reared in Kosci- 
usko county and in the common schools here 
received her education. To her parents 
there were born seven children, three sons 
and four daughters, of whom the only sur- 
vivors are Mrs. Black, and John W., a resi- 
dent of Milford, Indiana. To this union 
three children were born, as follows : Walter 



E., burn November 26, 1878, married Miss 
Maude Decker, and is the present marshal 
of Claypool; Nora B., born March 26, 1880, 
is the wife of William Adams, the latter be- 
ing a teacher in the grammar department of 
the Claypool schools; Edna M., born Sep- 
tember 26, [885, has a good education and 
resides at home with her parents, being un- 
married. She passed the examination for 
the high school and has also taken instruc- 
tion in music. The parents are members of 
the United Brethren church of Claypool, of 
which he has served as Sunday-school su- 
perintendent and as steward. He is a mem- 
ber of Tent No. 83, K. O. T. M.. and Mrs. 
Black of Hive No, 103, L. O. T. M., of 
Claypool, of which she is sergeant. Mr. 
Black is a Democrat and takes much interest 
in the affairs of the county and country. He 
is not an aspirant for office, but could well 
fill any county position. He is thoroughly 
practical and stands high in the community 
as man and neighbor. The family is emi- 
nently respectable and its members are un- 
usually well informed and intelligent. 



QUINCY A. HOSSLER. 

" 'Man is the noblest work of God' and 
a truly noble man but fulfills the plan of 
the Creator. The life of man describes a 
circle. The cycles of existence of different 
lives form concentric circles, for some are 
given but a quarter of a century wherein 
to complete the appointed work, while the 
span of others varies to the allotted three 
score and ten. But how true and comfort- 
ing that life is measured, not by years alone, 
but rather by a purpose achieved, by noble 



254 



COMPEXDIUM OP BIOGRAPHY. 



deed- accredited to it. How often are we 
confronted when a loved friend and co- 
worker answers the final summons, with 
the question 'Why must he go when there 
yet remains so much for him to do, when he 
ran so illy be spared?' But the grim mes- 
senger heeds not and we are left to mourn 
and to accept submissively." Such is the 
beautiful and appropriate introduction to a 
touching and eloquent memorial read before 
the eighth annual session of the Inland 
Daily Press Association, touching the life 
and character of the late Quincy A. Hossler, 
oi Warsaw, former president of the associa- 
tion and for many years one of Indiana's 
most popular and distinguished journalists. 
Mr. Hossler's untimely death removed from 
the newspaper fraternity of the west one of 
its brightest minds and loftiest intellect-. 
and the many beautiful tributes to his high 
standing in his profession and to his high 
Standing as a man and citizen attest the abid- 
ing place he had in the hearts and affec- 
tions of his brethren of the press and others. 
Quincy A. Hossler was born in the town 
of Millville, Butler county. Ohio, on the 
[8th day of October, 1843. His father. 
Jacob Hossler. removed from Ohio to Indi- 
ana in [850, settling first in Jay county, 
thence the same year came to the county of 
Kosciusko and located near the village of 
Lewisburg, where his death occurred a few 
months later. The early life of Quincy A. 
was -pent on the farm and when old enough 
he entered the common schools, where he 
prosecuted his studies until the age of four- 
teen. In 1857, with his mother, he re- 
moved to Warsaw and on January of the 
year following entered the printing office 
of the Northern Indianian to learn the "art 
preservative." His quick perception, indus- 



try, retentive memory and untiring indus- 
try enabled him to master the art in a com- 
paratively short time, so that in May, i86l, 
he started out a- a journeyman printer, go- 
ing first to Cairo. Illinois, where he worked 
at the case about eighteen months. This is 
sufficient evidence of his qualifications; but 
he began to extend his tour and during the 
three years following visited the northern 
and eastern states, replenishing his purse 
from time to time by working at his trade 
and gradually widening the area of his 
knowledge by contact with the world. 
Whether it be true or not that one locality 
possesses advantages over another in this 
art or not. it is certain that he acquired a 
thorough knowledge of what was known in 
the places he visited, which was a decided 
advantage in preparing him for his subse- 
quent career a- one of this state's most thor- 
ough, all round newspaper men. 

In 1866 Mr. Hossler returned to War- 
saw and for the ensuing two years was in 
the employ of his brother. C. G. Hossler. in 
the clothing business. On the 15th daj of 
May, iSOO, he was happily married to Miss 
Kate Paul, one of the city's most accom- 
plished and popular young ladies, and two 
years later purchased a half interest in the 
Northern Indianian newspaper office, assum- 
ing charge of the business and mechanical 
departments. The paper was conducted by 
Williams & Hossler until May. 1S75, when 
they purchased the Fort Wayne Daily and 
Weekly Gazette. Six months later General 
Williams withdrew from the firm and Mr. 
Hossler was left to conduct the paper alone, 
a task for which he was peculiarly well 
fitted, as the continued growth of the Ga- 
zette in public favor abundantly proved. 
Mr. Hossler edited the paper with marked 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



255 



ability until July. 1876, when he disposed 
of the office and returned to Warsaw, where 
his family had resided during' his absence 
and where he made his home the remainder 
of his days. 

During the last ten years or more of his 
life Mr. Hossler was connected with the 
publication of the Indiana Republican and 
the Daily Times of Warsaw as one of the 
business managers, a position for which he 
appears to have been admirably adapted. 
He became well and favorably known to the 
newspaper fraternity of the state and the 
high standing' he attained in the different 
editorial associations to which he belonged 
attested his popularity with his brethren of 
the press in Indiana and elsewhere. For a 
number of years he was an active member of 
the Indiana Republican Editorial Associa- 
tion, which passed appropriate resolutions 
touching his death at the meeting held in 
Indianapolis, February. 1894. His connec- 
tion with the Northern Indiana Editorial 
Association also dates back many years and 
in all of its sessions he was a conspicuous 
figure. He admired the social features of 
these gathering's, believing that by bringing 
editors together they would become better 
acquainted and thus prevent personal 
wrangles which too frequently appeared in 
the columns of their respective papers. This 
idea he always practiced and: carried out 
to. the fullest extent. In forming his per- 
sonal associations he entirely ignored party 
lines and among" his warmest friends were 
many who held opinions directly the op- 
posite of those which he entertained. He 
always manifested the liveliest interest in 
the welfare of this association, served two 
terms as its president and at the time of 
his death was a member of the executive 



committee. Mr. Hossler was also an en- 
thusiastic member of the National Editorial 
Association, the records of which contain a 
tribute to his worth, couched in elegant 
diction — in fact one of the most eloquent 
testimonials ever paid to the memory of a 
deceased brother. The preambles and reso- 
lutions adopted by the Indiana delegates to 
the national editorial convention held at As- 
bury Park. Xew Jersey, in July. 1894. are 
also beautiful and appropriate and refer at 
considerable length to his high professional 
standing and manly worth. In addition to 
the action taken by these several organiza- 
tions the Masonic and Odd Fellows frater- 
nities, of which he was a conspicuous mem- 
ber, and the Royal Arcanum paid due re- 
spect to his memory in beautifully written 
resolutions, while the press throughout the 
state contained many complimentary eulogi- 
ums testifying to his distinguished services 
as a journalist and bemoaning his departure 
from the ranks. 

Nearly all of Mr. Hossler's active life 
was connected with the newspaper busi- 
ness in its various capacities. During this 
long period of journalistic service he at- 
tained an enviable distinction, especially as 
a newspaper manager, while his whole- 
heartedness. boundless generosity and emi- 
nent social qualities made him a friend to 
every one with whom he had relations. He 
was a man of almost limitless energy and 
with him to will was to do. In his life work 
he was the very embodiment of enthusiasm 
and every enterprise that had for its object 
the upholding of the business enlisted his 
hearty co-operation and financial support. 
In his long and honored career he was not 
unmindful of the business side of life, by 
diligence and successful management hav- 



256 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



ing accumulated a handsome competency. 
although himseH one of the most liberal and 
whole souled of men. 

Mr. Hossler was of magnificent phy- 
sique and pleasing presence, a splendid speci- 
men of symmetrically developed American 
manhood. He moved among men as one 
horn to leadership and made his presence 
felt in whatever capacity his abilities were 
exercised. While devoted to his profession 
and frequently honored by being chosen to 
positions o| prominence and influence in its 
various associations, he loved to mingle 
with his fellow men, regardless of calling. 
and was the faithful friend and genial com- 
panion of all classes and conditions of peo- 
ple. His was a broad, liberal mind, optimis- 
tic in all the term implies, but exclusive in 
the sense that nothing savoring in the slight- 
est degree of insincerity, hypocrisy or cant 
could for a moment find lodgement therein, 
lie was a manly man, best liked by those 
who knew him most intimately, and like a 
ray of sunlight he often illumined and made 
bright the pathway of those into whose lives 
fortune cast no golden favors. 

While an ardent Republican and for 
years one of the party's recognized leaders 
in northern Indiana, he never allowed polit- 
ical differences to interfere with his business 
relations, nor. as already stated, did it have 
anything whatever to do in the matter of 
personal friendship. He was not identified 
with any religious body, yet had a most pr 
found respect for religion and for a number 
of years was a regular attendant <i the 
Presbyterian church of Warsaw, to which 
his wife belonged. A loving and no si 
voted husband, a master of his calling, I 
model citizen, a friend without deceitfulness 



or guile, a man without pretense, a bene- 
factor of his kind — such in brief may be 
-uninied up as the more prominent character- 
istics of Quincy A. Hossler. who for all time 
to come will rank as one i >f the noted men < f 
his day and generation in the state of Indi- 
ana. Struck down in the prime of vigorous 
manhood and in the zenith of his usefulness, 
he departed this life on the 6th day of De- 
cember. 1893, leaving to his friends and to 
the world the priceless heritage of a name 
the synonym of honor and a character un- 
sullied by the shadow of a stain. The ob- 
sequies were marked by beautiful and appro- 
priate religious ceremonies conducted by the 
pastor of the Presbyterian church, followed 
by the sublime ritual services of the various 
fraternal organizations of which the de- 
ceased was an honored member. A large 
concourse of friends and admirers followed 
the mortal remains to beautiful Oakwood 
cemeterj and when the beloved form was 
gently lowered to its final resting place each 
and every one in the vast throng felt the loss 
as a personal bereavement. 

In closing this sketch it is deemed ap- 
propriate to subjoin the following tender 
poem by William E. Pabor, poet laureate of 
the Northern Indiana Editorial Associate n, 
and read by him at its annual session in 
(894, commemorative of the "Past Year s 
I lead." of whom Mr. Hossler was one. 



I hey were, but air not; ,0 we meet 
We miss them and of each we say: 

Alas! a friend has passed away, 
Whose smiles, whose words we love to g 

We bow our heads and bend before 
The shrine of sorrow. Love is sli< 
And life is sweet; but, late or longf, 

1 .! iei stands and greets us on time's shore; 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



257 



A shore that stretches out so far 
That it in darkened distance dies; 
We seem to see where pleasure lies 

Across the waves that wash the bar. 

We watch the ships that seaward go 
Bearing our comrades from our side, — 
We see them into shadows glide, 

The shadows of a common woe. 

The hands we grasp are quiet now! 

The lips once eloquent are dumb! 

The heart, once warm, is cold and numb! 
And dust lies on each marble brow. 

Each was our comrade, brother, friend; 
Each is, — but we can trace the change 
That cometh as men cross the range, 

Or whither do their footsteps tend? 

Our pleading goes up to the sky: 
O! send us down yon starry track 
Some word of heavenly knowledge back! 

But silence is the sole reply. 

Somewhere, dark Calvary's Mount above, 
This legion grows with living light 
Across the darkness of the night: 

Death is the crown of Life through Love. 

So let us think of these no more 
As dead, who with us stood last year; 
They live, — perchance they still hold dear 

The friends they left on time's shore, 

And amaranth may crown each brow 
That we now deck with Asphodil; 
And lips with songs celestial swell 

That with us sleep in silence now. 



JOSHUA RING. 

When old age approaches it is quite the 
usual thing- for a person to look back over 
his life to find out whether the world is any 
better for his having lived. It must be a 
gloomy retrospect, indeed, when no good 
can lie found upon such an examination. 
On the contrary what a consolation it must 
be to any one to know that his life has been 
an example of excellence for the guidance of 



youth and for the congratulation of age. 
How pleasant it must be, when death ap- 
proaches, to be able to say truthfully, "I 
have lived an honest life and have done my 
whole duty." How many old persons who 
read these lines can hold up their heads with 
pride and say without a blush that the world 
is better for their having lived ? The sub- 
ject of this memorial is one of the number 
111 this county who can truthfully make such 
a statement. He is respected by every one 
who has the pleasure of his friendship and 
acquaintance. He is a native of the great 
German empire, his birth occurring in Wal- 
deck in May, 1830. His parents, Joshua 
and Caroline (Snyder) Ring, were married 
in that country, where they were also reared 
and educated. The father was a millwright 
by trade and followed that business in con- 
nection with farming. They were the par- 
ents of six children, as follows : Henrv, 
Joshua, Mary, Elizabeth, Philip and one 
that died in infancy. 

Joshua Ring, the subject of this notice, 
grew to manhood in his native country and 
secured a good education. He learned the 
business of farming and has made it his life 



work. 



After reaching 



his majoritv he 



worked for several years, carefully saving 
his earnings, for he had made up his mind 
to cross the ocean to America. On the 26th 
of May, 1854, he boarded a sailing vessel 
and after several weeks spent in tossing on 
the ocean was landed safe and sound in New 
York harbor. He came west to Seneca 
county. Ohio, and found employment on a 
farm and was thus employed for several 
years, saving his wages and getting ready to 
buy a farm for himself. He finally con- 
cluded that it is best for man not to live 
alone, and therefore took unto himself a wife 



: 5 .s 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



in the person of Miss Sarah Beele, by whom 
was born one child, Frank, now deceased. 
He came to Kosciusko county, Indiana, in 
January. 1862. His wife having died, he 
married Miss Margaret Human and by her 
has two children: Amos, born in [868, and 
Ella, born July 3, 1874, both unmarried and 
living with their parent-. Both children 
havi educations and are progressive 

and aspiring. When Mr. Ring first came 
to this country lie had only thirty dollars in 
the world, but since that time he has steadily 
forged ahead in the race of life. He 
first bought sixty acres of land in the 
woods, for which he paid two hundred 
dollar- down and owned four hundred and 
fifty dollars. He paid the latter by install- 
ment- as it became due. He cleared the 
little farm and made the improvements. He 
kept buying more land and now owns over 
one hundred and eighteen acres, all of which 
is as good as there is in the township. Be- 
sides this he has saved six thousand dol- 
lars. He has reason to be proud of his suc- 
cess in life and of his good name. Every- 
body holds him in the highest respect. His 
family are members of the Lutheran church 
and he contributes liberally to the support 
of the ministry. He is a Demi icrat and takes 
much interest in political affair-. He can 
say with truth. "1 have lived an honest life 
and have done my whole duty." 



METC \LI-'E BECK, Deceased. 

One of the early pioneer merchant- of 
Leesbur.-. Kosciusko county. Indiana, was 
the late Metcalfe Beck, who was not only a 
facti r 1 1 ci nsiderable importance in the de- 



velopment of the young city, but who at 
his death lett the impress of his vigorous 
mentality on the youngef members of a 
community who grew to maturity almost 
entirely within the years 1 ver which his 
own recollection- extended, covering a 
I 1 I over sixty years. To be brief, he 
was born in the parish of Thornwaite, in 
; the we-t riiling of Yorkshire, England, 
March 1 7, 1812, came to Kosciusko county, 
Indiana, about 1835, and here died < >Ctober 
15, 1896, being then eighty-four years, six 
months and twenty-eight days old. 

The parent- of Metcalfe Beck were 
quite well-to-do farming people in Eng- 
land, and when nine year- old he came to 
America with his father, lauding in New 
York city July u. 1821. In 1825 the fam- 
ily came as far west as Wooster, Ohio, 
where Metcalfe attended a common school 
one year, and the three following years 
studied the German tongue, familiarizing 
himself sufficiently well in this language as 
to qualify himself for a sale-man to pur- 
chasers who could understand German only. 
At Wooster, Ohio, he carried on the gro- 
cery trade for a short time, then sold out, 
and on June 29, [835, arrived in Kosci- 
usko county. Indiana. He clerked for 
James Comstock about a year at Leesburg, 
it being then the only town in the county, 
and then became proprietor of the store. 
He conducted it until [863, and then -old it 
to the late Edward Moore, he himself coin- 
in- to Warsaw. 

Metcalfe Beck was first joined in mar- 
riage December 22. 1S36, by Judge Com- 
stock, to Miss Eunice, eldest daughter of 
the Judge; but Eunice did not live long, 
and April 18, 1857, Mr. Beck married his 
second wife. Catherine Lewis, who died 




^eZ^^^f4^> 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



259 



May 22, [867, at the "1 Ionic on the Hill- 
side," at Danville, New York, whither sin: 
had been taken for treatment during her 
last illness. The third marriage of Mr. 
Beck was to Sarah, daughter of Rev. J. P. 
Styken. She was born near Trenton. Xew 
York, April 10, 1837, of Huguenot de- 
scent, and still survives. She most tenderly 
cared for her husband during his last ill- 
ness, and, indeed, during the last decade of 
"his life was almost a constant attendant at 
his bedside, administering comforts to him 
that excited the admiration and won the 
wannest congratulations of his many 
friends. 

Mr. Beck had long felt a strong desire 
to revisit the scenes of his youth, and in 
May, 1869, accompanied by his son Hud- 
son (since deceased), he made a trip to his 
native Yorkshire, as well as to* Scotland; 
later they went to France, where they were 
greatly impressed with the magnificence of 
Paris. From there they went to Boston, 
Massachusetts, en route for home. While 
abroad they wrote many descriptive letters 
as to their journeyiugs, which were pub- 
lished in the Daily Times, of Warsaw, and 
were eagerly read by their many friends. 

To the first marriage of Metcalfe Beck 
were born: Mary E., now the wife of 
William Binns ; Fludson, a biography of 
whom is given on another page; and Vic- 
toria, widow of Edward Moon. To the last 
marriage was born one son, who died when 
but eighteen months old, the love and 
affection of the father being concentrated 
upon him to the last, and the tender side of 
his nature showing at its best when at play 
with the little boy whose childish sports 
and caprices he enjoyed without reserve. 
Gen. Reuben Williams, editor of the Daily 
Times, in commenting on the character of 



Mr. Beck, had this to say: "From his boy- 
hood days to the hour of his death I was 
intimately acquainted with Mr. Beck; in- 
deed, we were more than acquaintances, for 
a friendship unbroken existed that we look 
back upon now with pleasure, its intimacy 
beginning as it did with a great disparity 
between our ages. His advice and encoiir- 
agement to us in the earlier struggles con- 
sequent upon the founding of the Northern 
Indianian helped much to sustain us in our 
efforts; and, knowing him, as we did, quite 
intimately, we are fully aware that some 
people are wrong in their estimate of his 
character. 

"He was one of the most methodical 
men we ever knew. In pioneer days, owing 
to his knowledge of legal and business 
affairs, he was often called upon to draw 
up contracts, make deeds, take mortgages, 
etc., for neighbors and friends, and when 
such a thing as a blot on the paper or a 
word had to lie stricken out, with his skill- 
ful penmanship he would do this in a way 
so ornamental that the error would appear 
to have been done intentionally. 

"Exact in business, he demanded, as he 
invariably paid, the last penny due; yet he 
was much more liberal when his judgment 
sanctioned than even his warmest and most 
intimate friends ever knew. An anecdote 
will illustrate: His whole heart and soul 
went out, at the very beginning, in favor 
■of saving the Union from; dissolution. In 
the company from this county were fifteen 
young men from Leesburg and vicinity, 
When drawn up- in line for marching for- 
ward to join the regiment he presented 
each with a five-dollar gold piece, saying 
that it would serve them for personal ex- 
penses." 

Mr. Beck came here with the first set- 



26o 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



tiers, who camped for nearly a year in the 
vicinity of Leesbnrg, awaiting the day fixed 
by the government for the entering of land, 
and was consequently well acquainted with 
all the peculiar characters both of the 
whites and Indians that are always to be 
found on the skirts of civilization, and. hav- 
ing a gi i d memory, could in later years re- 
late a great many incidents that happened 
in the pioneer days. 

Metcalfe Beck was a true Christian. 
He united with the First Presbyterian 
church of Warsaw February 20, 1N72. and 
was a conscientious communicant through- 
out the remainder of his life, but would 
never accept an official position in the 
church or elsewhere. When Mr. Beck had 
reached his twenty-first year Judge G'lii- 
Stock laid his hand on the former's head and 
said: "Stick to your business and let 1 iffice 
alone. 1 have gone through it and it is 
simply a thing of vain honor." 

The last ride .Mr. Beck took was to 
visit the grave of his old boyhood friend, 
John Hamilton, who had come to Warsaw 
for his health, or to \i si t Chicago Hill, as 
the Hamilton place is now called, but died 
shortly afterwards. On the last drive, on 
getting to the foot of the declivity. Joe 
Foote, his driver, helped him step by step 
up the hill till he reached the Hamilton 
grave. There they found that the tomb- 
St< ne had fallen, which greatly grieved 
Mr. Beck, a- it forcibly reminded him of 
his own appri aching end. Mr. F. B. 
Myers, also an Englishman who had trav- 
eled with Mr. Beck, likewise became one 
of the latter's closest friends. Although. 
before marriage. Mr. Beck was thought t- 
be somewhal deficient in tenderness, his 
after life showed that the reverse was the 
case, as the deep love for his wife and his 



sons, Edward M. and Hudson, and his 
many warm and lasting friendships fully 
proved. 

Mr. Beck brought with him from Eng- 
land his grandfather's Bible and with its 
contents was not at all unfamiliar, and this 
holy book he bequeathed to his grandson. 
Albion Beck. Mr. Beck was also in pos- 
session of his grandfather's watch, which 
he brought with him from England, and it 
i- a relic highly valued by the family. He 
committed to' memory the twelfth chapter 
of Ecclesiastes, and on one occasion when 
called upon for a speech repeated Agur's 
prayer (Proverbs 30:7-10). It was his in- 
variable practice, also, to lead in family 
prayer. The old buildings of Mr. Beck on 
the homestead are still left intact, even to 
the familiar old hunting stove he had used 
in cooking the g"ame he killed when sport- 
ing in the woods. 

In March. 1876, Mrs. Heck gathered a 
class of one hundred children who habitu- 
ally attended the meetings at the old white 
Presbyterian church edifice and there was 
started the first young people's meeting, 
which has since l>een merged into the So- 
ciety of Christian Endeavor, each attend- 
ant being presented with a medal. She has 
ever been a hard worker in the cause of 
Christianity and has attended a number of 
large assemblages of church-w > rkers, and 
is stil] revered by her neighbors for her 
gi k k1 w« rks. 



JEROME HARRISON BOXES. 

It seems there is no start in life which 
SO well prepares a man for his future career 
as the boyhood years spent on the farm. In 
this respect Jerome H. Lones, the trusted 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



261 



agent of the Pennsylvania Railroad Com- 
pany at Warsaw, a man of versatile inter- 
ests, being an up-to-date stock breeder and 
a promoter and stockholder in various pub- 
lic enterprises, was fortunate. 

He was born three and one-half miles 
north of Bucyrus, Ohio, August 20, 1853. 
His parents were Harrison and Celia Ann 
(Benson) Lones. In 1854 they removed, 
by way of the Mad river road, the Ohio and 
Mississippi rivers, to Iowa,/ but soon re- 
turned and located on a farm in Wyandot 
county, Ohio. His father died when he was 
six years old and the mother moved with 
her two daughters and son to Marsailles, 
Ohio', where he attended school until twelve 
years of age, when they returned to the 
farm. Bereft of a father when so young, as 
the only son he early grew into the respon- 
sibilities of the head of the family and be- 
tween the ages of fourteen and nineteen had 
full charge of the affairs of the farm. Thus 
the young man was in training for the larger 
duties and responsibilities of later years. 
These years of practical experience only 
whetted his taste for learning and he now- 
entered the National Normal School at Ada, 
Ohio, his mother removing to that place in 
order that each of her children might enjoy 
the advantages of the school. The follow- 
ing June his mother died. During the win- 
ter of the coming year he taught his first 
school at Kenton, Ohio. Wishing to still 
better prepare himself for the business of 
life, he then took a course of study in the 
Iron City Business College in Pittsburg, 
Pennsylvania. The following summer was 
spent in improving the farm and; making 
repairs with a view to selling, which was 
done. A desire for railroad business had be- 



gun to possess him and later he came to Ft. 
Wayne, where he applied for an agency, 
but learned that to hold such a position it 
was necessary for him to be a practical oper- 
ator. He sought other employment, but 
with little success and after a few weeks was 
willing to take any position offered, and ac- 
cepted a position as brakeman on a freight 
train on the central division of the Pitts- 
burg & Ft. Wayne Railroad. His earnest 
desire to excel was soon recognized and 
within a year he was given a place in the 
freight office at Ft. Wayne. Later he had 
charge of the freight department of the 
Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad in the 
Pennsylvania office and was next made as- 
sistant cashier for that office. However, he 
still desired an office of his own and, having 
well prepared himself for such a position 
by this previous training, on the 28th of Au- 
gust, 1883, he was appointed agent for the 
Pennsylvania Railroad Companv at War- 
saw and on the 30th of the same month took 
charge of the office. 

Air. Lones' worth as manager of the 
company's interests was recognized in as- 
signing him to so important a place, for the 
office was a good one even then and there 
were prospects for a larger increase in busi- 
ness with the opening and improvement of 
the county. Although the regular salary- 
was but forty dollars a month, there was a 
handsome commission on sales of tickets, 
this alone increasing the salary in some 
months to from one hundred and twenty- 
five to three hundred dollars per month. 
After the inter-state commerce law went into 
effect this custom was discontinued and since 
then the office has not afforded such good 
returns. The office now requires a force 



262 



COMPENDIUM 01 IRAPHY. 



md two op< The 

business formerly done was largely in live 

k. timber, lumber and ice, but, with the 
changing interests of the county, the cl 

freights has changed, the present bu 
;s being mor< of merchandise and 

manufactured products. Mr. Lones himself 
has been one of the foremost men in brii 
ing about some of these conditions. Twelve 
years ago he, in company with A. < >. *. atlin 
and O. 11. Mathews, had some experience 
in profitable investment in Iowa lands, his 
companions buying the famous Alexander 
Mitchell farm. Selling to advantage, he 
again invested in a tract of about eight hun- 
dred acres, which he sold during the next 
three years at a great profit, generally doub- 
ling; where lie had bought for fifteen dol- 
lars, he sold for thirty dollars. Six years 
secured a tract of three hundred and 
sixty acres of what was then almost worth- 
less land near Warsaw and which he sel 
about to make valuable by suitable drainage. 
In order to secure the proper fall of water it 
was necessary to have the main channel 
the Tippecanoe river straightened, which 
was done by the co-operation of many other 
citizens, the course of the river being short- 
ened about live miles. Ditches cut to Little 
Pike lake lowered that body about four f( 
which enabled them to drain all the low 
land, making excellent farms of what was 
before hut little more than worthless swamp. 
The reclaiming of this land was a public 
benefit by ridding the vicinity of a miasmia- 
breeding marsh ami by increasing the value 

surrounding land. < me of the best stock 
farms i- the result of this effort, to which 
the name of Lake Glen Stock 
Farm. Here Mr. Lones' faculty for di 



whatever he does well i- in evidence. He 

. herd of fifty very excellent thor 
bred Aberdeen Angus cattle. Shropshire 
sheep are also bred here and to the details 
of all breeding Mr Lones d< tes hi- per- 

attention, subverting it only to tl i 
mands of his office. 

Oni : the first enterprises of public 
which he was one of the organ- 
was the People's Loan & Savings As- 
sociation of Warsaw, of which he ha- been 
vice-president since it- organization. Dr. 
Burket i- the able president In January. 
[900, the officers of this association 01 
ized the Indiana Loan & Trust Company, of 
which Mr. Lones i- vice-president. In De- 
cember, 1900, the Warsaw Canning Factory 
incorporated, with a capital of twenty 
thousand dollar-, of which he i- one of the 
principal stockholders and it- president. 

As in other t! in lodge work. 

Mr. Lones could he satisfied with nothing 
hut the highest rank and stands a thirty- 
second-degree Mason, holding relation to 
the Indiana Consistory at Indianapolis; Ft. 
Wayne Lodge <-i Perfection; and Darius 
Council at Ft. Wayne. He is high priest, 
a- well a- pa-t high priest, of the Warsaw 
Chapter, I\. A. M.. and past eminent com- 
mander and present prelate of the Warsaw 
Commandery, K. T. He and his wife were 
charter members of local chapter of the 
( >rder of Eastern Star, he being pa-t worthy 
patron and she past worthy matron. 

Mr Lones was married, in [878, at Ft. 
Wayne, to Miss Jennie Logan, who was 
horn and reared in that city. In |*ilitics 
Mr. Lones i- a stanch Republican, and an 
energetic exponent of the principles of his 
party. 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



'63 



BENJAMIN F. DAY. 

It is no doubt true that of all countries 
of the world Ireland has sent more emi- 
grants t" the United States in proportion to 
population than any other country, and the 
reason is well known. For hundreds of 
years the Emerald Isle has been denied 
many of its most sacred privileges by Great 
Britain, and the self respect and pride of the 
people were ground into the dust. The only 
way to avoid this was by emigrating to the 
free soil of the United States, where the 
Irishman could have an equal chance in the 
battle of life. The grandfather of subject, 
John Day. was a native of old Ireland and 
emigrated first to England and then to the 
United States about the time of the Revo- 
lutionary war. He enlisted in the army of 
Washingti m and assisted the colonies in ob- 
taining their independence. He served as a 
private, was in a number of important move- 
ments of the armies and finally was honor- 
ably mustered out. At the close of the strug- 
gle he came west and settled in Ohio and 
there lived the remainder of his days. In 
Ohio he married Elizabeth Ballanger, who 
was a native of Ohio, and by her had six 
children, as follows: Bryan D., Jacob E., 
Axie. Huston, Jesse, Joseph and Lydia. 
John Day was a typical Irishman and a gen- 
uine pioneer. His son Joseph grew up on 
his father's farm and selected that occupa- 
tion for his life's work. Upon reaching man- 
hood he wedded Miss Lydia Hyatt, a na- 
tive of North Carolina, and by her had eight 
children, as follows: Benjamin, subject; 
Elizabeth, who became the wife of George 
Reese and is deceased: Rachel, who died in 
early Womanhood; William, who died 
when a young man. was never married; 



John, who married Ella Rush, now deceased. 
and lives in Grant county: Alfred, who died 
when a boy : Ella, who married Edwin 
W Is and resides in Illinois; Ida, unmar- 
ried. Benjamin F. Day was born in Grant 
county, Indiana, October 4, 1844. He grew 
to man's estate on his father's farm and se- 
cured a fair education. He remained on the 
Grant county farm until about the age of 
twenty years, when he enlisted in Company 
H, One Hundred ami Eighteenth Regiment 
Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and served as a 
private for six months. He then returned 
to Grant county, and soon afterward again 
enlisted, this time in Company 1). Eighth 
Indiana Volunteer Cavalry. Under his first 
enlistment he was in several skirmishes, and 
in his last service he fought at Greensln r- 
ough, Raleigh, Nashville, Franklin and 
many skirmishes. He was neither wounded 
m ir taken prisoner, but was in the hospital 
one week. He was mustered out July 20, 
1865, and now draws a pension of ten dol- 
lars per month. After the war he resumed 
farming on his father's farm in Grant coun- 
ty. In 1867 he wedded Miss Mary J. Will- 
hike and by her has four children : Edward, 
who married Leona Daily and lives in 
Grant county; Joseph, deceased; Lillie I., 
who married Dallas Bay and lives in Grant 
county: Clayton died in infancy. His first 
wife dying in 1879, ne married Mrs. Mary 
( Benbow ) Criswell. and by her has two chil- 
dren : Thomas, who lives in Grant county, 
and Spritz Xellie. who also lives in Grant 
c< unity. His second wife dying, he mar- 
ried Mrs. Lucinda (Robinson) Miller, his 
present wife, in March. 1893. ^' le vvas the 
widow of Gilford Miller. Three children 
were born to this union: Elza. deceased; 
Nora A., who lives with her father: Everett, 






COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



who married I ora Limebaugh and livi 
Peru, Indiana, and is the father of one child, 
Burdette, born April i. 1894. Mr. Day has 
a fine farm and is in comfortable circum- 
stances. He is a Republican and takes much 
interest in his party's success. He and his 
wife arc |>eople of undoubted high respect- 
ability. 



JOHN M. MILLER. 

[f there is one thing which distinguishes 
the American business man over thi 
any other country it is the facility with 
which any and all occupations arc readily 
taken up by him and made successful. In 
the older countries it was customary for the 
son to follow the father's pursuit. "Follow 
your father, my sen. and do as your father 
1i;ls dune." was a maxim which all sons were 
expected to adopt. It is in such countries 
as the United States that full swing can be 
given to the energies of the individual. A 
man ma\ choose any business >t profession 
he desires, ami he is limited only by com- 
petition, lie must meet the skiil of others 
and give as good service as they or he will 

nol gel the |>.'siti.piis. Such adaptation to 
any work or business is well shown in the 
early career of the subject of this sketch, 
lie turned his hand t" many things and 

proved that farming was not the only occu- 
pation which he could make successful. 
lie was ix>rn in Ober-Kalbach, Germany, 
Maj 30, 1837, an«l is the son of Nicholas 
and Elizabeth ( N ost 1 Miller, both parents 
being also natives of that country. The fa- 
ther was a miller in truth, as his name in- 
dicates, and for man} years ran a grist-mill, 
but in connection with the same also con- 



ducted the operations of farming. Both 
parents were people of more than ordinary 
intelligence and both had good educati 

in their native tongue. The father took a 
verv active part in the movements of the Re- 
formed church and was a man of much in- 
fluence ami prominence in that country. 
The issue of his marriage was as follows: 
Elizabeth, who married in Germany an 
now deceased; Catherine married in Ger- 
man) ami is also deceased: Anna, who mar- 
ried Nicholas Ommert and lives in G 
many; Nicholas, deceased; Nicholas, Jr., de- 
ceased; John M.. subject. The latter was 
the youngest of the family, and he and his 
sister Anna are the only ones living. John 
remained with his father on the farm until 
he had attained the age of nineteen years. 
During his youth he attended the schools of 
the country, and received a good education 
in German and Latin, and in this respect 
was pretty well prepared for the duties 
life. He had heard of the great country 
across the Atlantic and in early manh 
determined to go there, believing that he 
could improve his condition. So on August 
27, [856, he boarded a sailing \essel and on 
tober i<>. [856, was landed in New York 
harlior. He came west at once and stopped 
at Cleveland. < ttlio, where he hired out to a 
blacksmith for sj x dollars per month. He 
knew his services were worth more than that 
small sum. hut he must gel a start and was 
willing to do anything at first. The next 
spring he was offered fourteen dollars per 
month to remain with the blacksmith, hut 
refused, and came on to Indiana, landing at 
aw where he secured a job on the rail- 
road at one dollar ami fifteen cents a day. In 
the fall of same year he went to Ft. Wayne 
and began working at the wagon trade, hut 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



265 



ere long returned to this county and began 
working at the carpenter's trade, continuing 
the same for a number of years, at the end 
of which time he began to contract for him- 
self. All this shows in a marked degree his 
skill in adapting his energies to anything 
that will give him a profit. In other words, 
it shows him t< 1 he a good business man. 
From that day to this he has built scores of 
buildings in this section of the count}'. 
When he first came to Warsaw he had 
twelve dollars and fifty cents. He now has 
one hundred and sixty acres of excellent 
land, and has made the whole of it himself 
except <>ne hundred and fifty dollars which 
he received from home. In the spring of 
(863, March 8. he married Miss Lena Ha- 
inan, who is of Germanic descent, her par- 
ents having come from that country a num- 
ber of years before. She was born October 
21, 1838. The issue of this marriage was 
two children, as follows: Anna E., born 
December 10. 1863, living with her parents, 
and Catherine, born April 12, 1870, who is 
the wife of Amber D. Sands and lives in 
Seward township. The family belongs to 
the Lutheran church, in which Mr. Miller 
is an active member and deacon. In politics 
he is a conservative Democrat and his prom- 
inence is shown by the fact that on several 
occasions he has l>een named by his party 
6 >v a >unty commissioner, but as the county 
is strongly Republican he went down with 
his party to defeat. On two occasions he 
was defeated for township trustee by a very 
low majority. He made no canvass to se- 
cure the position. He is the present actuary 
of the Farmers' Mutual Insurance Company 
of this county, which position takes much of 
hi- time at present. But it shows the recog- 
nized ability, high character and standing 



of Mr. Miller. Mr. Miller has at various 
times since 1863 acted in the capacity of 
guardian and as administrator of estates, 
and in these capacities has handled thou- 
sands of dollars' worth of property, to the 
thorough satisfaction of the beneficiaries. 
He has also served as a juror a number of 
times. 



SILAS M. ROBINSON. 

It is the pride of the citizens of this coun- 
try that there is no limit to which natural 
ability, industry and honesty may not as- 
pire. A boy born in ignorance and poverty 
and reared under the most adverse surround- 
ings may nevertheless break from his fetters 
and rise to the highest station in the land. 
And the qualities do not have to be of tran- 
scendant character to enable him to accom- 
plish this result. It is more the way he does 
it and his skill in grasping the opportunities 
presented than to any remarkable qualities 
possessed by him. Accordingly it is found 
that very often in this country the president, 
governor and other high public officials pos- 
sess no higher ability than thousands of 
other citizens. They have simply taken bet- 
ter advantage of their circumstances than 
their fellows. And this truth runs through 
every occupation. The farmer who rises 
above his fellow farmers does so by taking 
advantage of conditions which others over- 
look or fail to grasp. The family repre- 
sented by subject has always been classed 
with the best and thriftiest of the county in 
point of skill in farming and stock raising. 
Silas M. Robinson was born in Seward 
township, Kosciusko county, July 31, i860, 
his parents being Andrew and Rebecca 






COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



(Paxton) Robinson. In the spring of 1838 
tin.- Robinson family came from Kentucky 
to Tippecanoe county, Indiana, and thence 
to Kosciusko county, where the grandfa- 
ther had bought one hundred and sixty acres 
of wild land. The Paxton family came 
from Ohio to Indiana in 1841. Both fam- 

ire "i English descent and peop 
much respectability. Andrew Robinson and 
Rebecca Paxton met. loved and were mar- 
ried in 1850. To them three children were 
hum. two -"ii- and one daughter: Lucinda 
R. became the wife of Gilford I'.. Miller, 
after whose death she married Benjamin F. 
Day and resides on the west eighty 
of the .>ld farm: Lyman \\\. who married 
Mi- Sally Miller, live- in Akron. Indiana; 
Silas M.. subject. The latter ha- always 
lived "ii .1 farm and on the "Id "lie which his 
grandfather entered from the government 
nearly three-quarters of a centurj ago. He 
secured, in youth, a common-school educa- 
tion and learned early t" handle the ax and 
plow. In 1882 he concluded, as did the 
e, that it wa- ii"i gi od For man to live 
alone, so he determined t" take unto himself 
a wife, which he did in the person of Miss 
Amanda E. Richards, a young lady of many 
graces and accomplishments. To this mar- 
one child, Mand M.. wa- born July 5. 
1883. She ha- now passed the eighth grade 
in school. His first wife having died in 
February, 1*04. Mr. Robinson -elected for 
In- second wife Mr-. Viola Kryder, widow 
of John Kryder. and t" this marriag 
child was born: Leora, born June 14. 
Mr-. Robinson wa- born in Stephi 
county, Illinois, January _•<>. [863, and i- a 
daughter of Enos S. and Catharii 
1 Babb) Rees. The latter couple were the 
parents of six children, two sons and four 



daughters, of whom five are vet living, three* 
in Illinois and two in Indiana. Enos S. 
Rees wa- born in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, 

■her 1. 1838, and i- yet living. He f 
lowed farming, hut ha- been during his later 
year- a minister in the Lutheran Evangeli- 
cal church. In jx-litics he i- a Democrat. 
Hi- wife wa- horn in Muncy. Pennsylvania, 
A|>ril 21, I1S40. and is a member of the 
Lutheran church. Mr. Robinson ha- a fine 
farm of eight) an excellent 

• ck of all kinds, l>ein.y 
judge 1 >f tine Stock. Hi 1 >f the r. 

enterprising farmer- of the county and has 
om for table home. He was at one time a 
member of the United Brethren church, 
while his wife i- a member of the Methodist 
Episcopal denomination. Il< 
Tent X". 57, K. O. T. M., at Akr"ti. Indi- 
ana, in which he carries life insurance. He 
i- a Republican and take- an appreciative 
interest in politics. Mr. Robinson has in his 
I parchment deed, dated 
July 5. 1837, and signed bj President Mar- 
tin Van Buren, which was for land entered 
by William Robinson, the grandfather of 

the subject. 

♦ ■ » 

[RVIN 1'.. V\ EBBER. 

Indiana has been especially honored in 

the character and career of her public and 
al men. In every county there 
are t>. he found, rising above their fellows, 
individual- born t" leader-hip in the various 
tions and pr 3, men who domi- 

nate not alone by superior into e and 

natural endowment hut by natural fori 
character which minimizes discoui 
ments and dare- great undertakings. Such 




-zrur; 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



267 



uen are by no means rare and it is always 
able to study their lives, weigh their 
11. tives and hold up their achievements as 
ncentives to greater activity and higher ex" 
ellence on the part of others just entering 
ipon their first struggles with the world. 
[Tiese reflections are suggested by the 
areer of one who has forged his way to 
he front ranks of the favored few and who 
\ a stn ng inherent force and superior prof- 
essional ability, directed by intelligence 
nd judgment of a high order, stands to- 
ay among the representative men of Kos- 
iusko county and northern Indiana. It is 
oubtful if any citizen of this part of the 
tate lias achieved more honorable mention 
r < ccupied a mi re conspicuous place in the 
rofession which he represents than Irvin 
\. Webber, a leading physician and sur- 
eon of Warsaw, to a brief epitome of 
hose life the reader's attention is here- 
ith respectfully invited. 

Dr. Webber is descended from an old 
)hio family that figured in the early pio 
eer history of Mahoning and Portage 
unities. lli> father. John Webber, was 
Dm in the northeastern part of that state 

I [8ll, and the mother, who here the 
laiden name of Luanda Stall, first saw the 
ght of day one year later. They were 
tarried in Mahoning county and subse- 
uently settled in the county of 1'ortage, 
f which they were early pioneers. John 
Webber purchased a tract of wild land. 
p. n which he erected a rude log cabin 
nd for a number of years thereafter la- 
red industriously, clearing his farm and 

taking a home for himself and these de- 
endent upon him. He was honorable in 

II of his relations, a successful agricultur- 
it, and. although quiet and unobtrusive in 
eineanor was a man of strong mentality 

16 



and wide ami varied information. He was 
a pronounced Republican in politics ami 
always lain red earnestly for the success of 
his party, hut never aspired to office or pub- 
lic distinction. He lived a long and useful 
life 1 11 the old homestead in Portage coun- 
ty, always enjoyed the esteem and confi- 
dence of his fellow- citizens and at his death 
left as a heritage to his family a name un- 
tainted by the slightest suspicion of any- 
thing dishonorable. His death occurred 
February 17, 1881. 

The Doctor's mother is still living, hav- 
ing reached the remarkable age of ninety 
years. She retains in a marked degree the 
pi 3S< "i,,n of her bodily powers and mental 
faculties, and is noted for her beautiful 
Christian character and sterling qualities of 
head and heart. She has long been zeal* >us 
in religious work and from early youth her 
daily life has been a practical exemplifica- 
tion of the sincerity of her Christian faith. 
At the present time she lives among her 
children, who are unremitting in their 
efforts to make the remainder of her earthly 
pilgrimage pleasant and agreeable, sparing 
no kindly attentions or loving ministra- 
tions. John and Lucinda Webber were 
the parents of five children: Edwin L., de- 
ceased; Lydia J., who married William 
Cleverly and resides in the town of At- 
water. Portage county. Ohio; Selden, a 
hardware merchant of Warsaw; Irvin B.. 
of this review; and Charles, wdio died in 
childhi 1 id. 

Dr. Irvin 1!. Webber was born at Deer- 
field, Portage county, Ohio, on the 31st day 
of March, [846. Blessed with excellent 
parental training, he early formed correct 
habits which had a decided influence in 
moulding his character and shaping his 
future a urse of conduct, and his childho d 



268 



COUl'E.XI'lCM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



and youthful year- sped awaj i n the farm. 
that fruitful soil from which have sprung 
the moral bone and sinew i f the land. 
Dame !■'• rtune cast no glittering favi rs in 
liis pathwa\ and at an early age he was 
obligi ear his part in cultivating the 

tributing supp rt i f the 

family. This free, wholesome life, in 
touch with nature, was not without salu- 
tary influence, as it taught him the valuable 
I independence and self-reliance 
which have always been among his mosl 
marked characteristics. Jn the district 

' of his neighborh 1 he acquired a 

knowledge < f the elementary branches 

equently, when fourteen years old, he 
entered the high - il Alliance, where 

for some time he pursued an advanced 
ci urse i f study. Actuated by a laudable 
desire ti add t< his scholastic attainments, 
he Still later attended an excellent - 
I at Randolph, after which, at tl i 
.enteeu. he began teaching in his 

the Ci 011 

Shi rtlj after entering up' n his duties 
m the school n i m the Docti r resigned h\< 
n fi r the purp se i f entering the 
army, enlisting in January. [865, in I 
pany H, One Hundred and Eighty-fourth 
Ohio Volunteer Infantry, with which he 
served until September following, lli- mil- 
itary experiet i l principall) o\ 
guard duty, the regiment being assigned to 
" the N'adnille & Chattana ga railroad 
and ti prevent the enemj from interfering 
with that line "f communication. Receiving 
nis discharge, the Doctor returned ti Port- 
esumed the work of ti 
thus engaged ab< ut one year 
when he became a student of Oberlii 

which institution he attended until the 
fall , 1 [866. Being offered the superin- 



tendency 1 f the public schi anal Ful- 

ton, a I n of Stark county, he left 

d during the ensuing two years 
filled that pjsition with credit to himself and 
satisf; ill 1 cerned. 1 le ach 

an enviable reputation, both as instri 
and school manager, and had he seen lit to 

■ hi- life to educational work would 
doubtless have achieved distinction in that 
imp. rtant field. 

When a mere yi nth Dr. Webber mani- 
fested a decided preference for the medical 
and while teaching formulated 

for carrying out a desire of long stand- 
ome a physician. During hi- va- 
cations he read medical work- a- opportuni- 
ties all' rded and the mi ney earned by his 
servici superintendent enabled him t.> 

that position ami devote hi- time ex- 
clusively to study. Entering the offici 
Drs. Belding and Waggoner at Ravenna, 
Ohio, he prosecuted hi- studies and re- 

les until 181 8, in the fall of which year 
he entered the medical department of the 
L'niversitj of Michigan. After remaining 
at that instituti car he attended, dur- 

ing the winter of [869-70, tin i 

Medicine and Sureery at Cincinnati, com- 
pleting the prescribed course and receiving 
his degree in February of the latter year. 
With a mind well disciplined by intellectual 
and 1 nal training, Dr. Webber, on 

the 1 -t day of April, 1870, opened an of- 
fice in Warsaw and entered upon the active 
practice < i his pri fession. Hi- abilities in 
In- chosen calling were not 1< ng in being 
and appreciated and within a 
comparatively brief period he succeeded in 
building up a lucrative practice. The 1 >• C 
a man of marked ability and today 
i- recognized a- one of the most eminent 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



269 



physicians and surgeons in northern Indi- 
ana, also standing in the front rank of his 
compeers throughout the entire state. His 
watchfulness over the interests and the wel- 
fare of his patients, his devotion to the pro 
fession, his sound judgment and good sense, 
with other equally meritorious qualities, 
combine to complete his acknowledged fit- 
ness for his calling. His adaptability for 
the position of family physician is excelled 
by none and equalled by few. and his inter- 
course with his felluw men is such that his 
conduct commands the respect and confi- 
dence of all. llis practice has been profes- 
sionally and financially successful, and he 
ha-- gained an ample competence, besides 
achieving a reputation much more than local. 
At the present time he is one of the oldest 
resident physicians in Warsaw, but his pow- 
ers are still in the zenith of their usefulness 
and there yet remain to him many years in 
which to minister to humanity and alleviate 
the sufferings to which the race is subject. 
Dr. Webber was married at Owatonna, 
Minnesota, on the 21st of May, 1874, to 
Miss Jennie M. Wilson, whose birth oc- 
curred in this county May 22, 1885. the 
daughter of Rev. William S. and Margar- 
etta (Craig) Wilson. They have three 
sons : Roy I., born August 27, 1876; John 
W., horn July 29, 1879; Edwin M., who 
first saw the light of day April 18, 1889. 
k<>\ I. Webber was graduated from Purdue 
University, Lafayette, and is now an accom- 
plished civil engineer of Sewickley, Pennsyl- 
vania; John W. is engaged in the insurance 
business at Warsaw, and Edwin M., who is 
a student, is still under the parental roof. 
Dr. Webber keeps in close touch with the 
trend of modern thought relating to medical 
science, has a fine library and is much re- 



ferred to by his professional brethren of 
Warsaw and elsewhere. As a member of 
the Kosciusko County Medical Society he 
has done much to advance the standard of 
excellence among the physicians and sur- 
geons in this part of the state, and has taken 
a prominent part in the deliberations of that 
body. As a member of the Indiana Medical 
Society he has met the leading men of. the 
profession throughout the state, among 
whom his reputation has long been known 
and duly appreciated. In addition to the 
above two organizations he holds member- 
ship with the American Medical Society and 
for some years has been identified with the 
Big Four Railroad Association as one of its 
representative surgeons. At the present 
time the Doctor is secretary of the local 
board of pension examiners and holds a 
similar position with the Warsaw city board 
of health. From 1S90 to 1899 he served as 
secretary of the board of school trustees of 
Warsaw, in all of which his duties have 
been discharged in a manner calculated to 
add to his high professional repute. 

Dr. Webber is a prominent member of 
the Masonic fraternity, in which he has risen 
to a high rank, having served as grand com- 
mander of the Knights Templars of Indiana 
in 1 89 1. He also served as grand patron of 
the Order of Eastern Star and has been en- 
thusiastic and untiring in his efforts to pro- 
mote the interests of the various depart- 
ments of the orders with which he is con- 
nected. In politics he is a decided Repub- 
lican, always ready to support and defend his 
political convictions. He is active in his 
party, acting always from principle and not 
from aspirations for office or political pre- 
ferment. Sometimes he sees fit to differ 
from party leaders, in which instances he 



2/0 



COMPE.XDIUM .R.ll'IlY. 



claims the pri f supporting men and 

measures only when in his judgment they 

secure the best inten 
the whole people, lit- is bold and independ- 
ent in character, resolute in purpose and 
only yields to dictation from • >tliers when 
such a course mei approval and 

es worthy em 

\)r. Webl er is a firm believer in revealed 
religion and, with his wife ;.n<l three 

i the Presbyterian church. He 
contributes liberally to the support of the 
el both at home and abroad and his 
name is invariably identified with all worthy 
enterprises tending to promote the m 
of the community and make the world 1 let- 
ter, lie dso take- a pardonable pride in 
tlie material prosperity of the city of his 
residence, is a believer in it- future and lends 

duer.ee to all mi vements calculati 
any way t" develop the resources of the 
county and state. Socially the Doctor and 
In- famil) move in the 1- ety circles 

and are deservedly popular with all cl 
< f people in the community. Their home 
quiet retreat where refined simplicity 
reigns and within its hospitable walls his 
friends are frequently wont t" assemble i<> 
enjoj the spirit of good cheer and he enter- 
tamed by the charm of their pres< 
conversation. 

( >f Dr. Webber personally it ma 
i man ol ind active sympathies; 

hi- temperament i- warm and ardent, his 
feelings deep and intense and these and other 
attractive characteristics have unconsci 
drawn to him an unusual number i 
friend- upon whom, under all circumst; 
he can rely. He : Student of human 

nature and comprehends with little effort the 
motives ami purp> men. A 



truth, he 

hypocrisy in all of its ph i him an 

especial abomination. In brief, he i- a man- 
ly man. of pi ut dignified presi 
a profound student of many subjects and a 
kader in the pr< - to which his life 

r and 
unflaj lustry and energj he 

tip a position and dis- 

tinction and stands today a conspicuous 
ample of symmetrically developed, sm 

ful American manh 1. lie 

the noted physicians 

and - 5 of northern Indiana and his 

e of the state's representative 

- cheerfulh d by all who 

know him. 



EPHRAIM \\ EL] 

In reading over the record of the 
of many prominent citizens one becomes im- 

ed with the fact that certain families 
-how at the outset their strong inch: 
toward hooks and learning rally. 

Among the farming community it is the rule 
and not the exception to find ordinary edu- 
cations, hut occasional!} a famil) i- met with 
that rise- above the otlu-r> in the 
education and the capacity to grasp the 
larger questi ns of mental improvement. 
Such a family is that of the subject of this 
memoir. He was born in Miami county. 
< >hio. November i i. 1839, and i- the child 
of William 1'. and Almyra 1 Trueax 1 Wells, 
the father's family hailing originally from 

nia and the mother'- from Maryland. 

grandfather was Levi Well-, a ma 
unusual capacity — a genius, in short. He 
married, in Virginia, a Mi-- Sinn. 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



271 



to them fifteen children were born. He ex- 
hibited his oratorical ability in early man- 
hood and later became an exhorter of the 
Methodist Episcopal church and was a man 
of sincere piety and great personal worth. 
lie studied and practiced medicine and 
was as successful in that difficult profession 
as in the ministry. In connection with his 
duties, he kept a store and was in 
many ways the leader of his section in 
thought and motive. He also owned a farm 
and carried on husbandry to a considerable 
extent. His sun. William P., was reared 
under these excellent influences and bene- 
fited by them. He grew to manhood on 
his father's farm and early married Miss 
Trueax and to them the following children 
were In n'n : Levi, who died in infancy; 
Ephraim, subject; Martha J., who became 
the wife of Benjamin Keesey, and after his 
death, the wife of George Michaels, of Lake 
township; Harriett K. married Peter Clem- 
tner and is deceased : Xancy E.. who married 
William Clemmer and lives in Mentone, In- 
diana : Anna, who became the wife of Will- 
iam Caldwell and lives in Clay township; 
Esther, who married Henry Left'el and re- 
side- in Wayne township. William P. 
Wells moved from Miami county. Ohio, in 
November, 1X41), and bought a farm in Lake 
township. Like his father, he also was a 
minister of the gospel, but his church was 
different, being the United Brethren. He 
hed about thirty years and for about 
fifteen years was an itinerant. He possessed 
much of the tine oratorical ability of his fa- 
ther, and was a man of great usefulness and 
high character, his life being filled with 
good deeds, mostly unknown to his neigh- 
bors. At ten years of age the subject 1 
this memoir was bn ugfht to this county bv 



his father. He attended the common schools 
and was very apt. managing to easily master 
the common branches at an early age. At 
the age of twenty-one years he began teach- 
ing in the common schools and for twenty- 
four years continued to lie thus employed. 
He became probably the most proficient 
teacher in the county, and held the highest 
license granted by the county superintend- 
ent. He took special instruction for teach- 
ing from the high school in Warsaw, and 
from the Methodist Episcopal college at Ft. 
Wayne. At one time he held a position in 
the public schools of Silver Lake. His 
methods of instruction anticipated in many 
ways the excellent usages and ideas of the 
present day. His high moral character, 
fine scholarship, advanced ideas and splen- 
did discipline made him the leading edu- 
cator of the county, not excepting one. He 
has been three times married, his third wife 
being Mrs. Jennie ( Funk ) Widener, who 
presented him with two children: Aaron, 
who died in infancy, and Edna, born Decem- 
ber 11, 1SS3, who will complete the fresh- 
man year in 1902 in Otterbein University, 
at Westerville, Ohio. She has a fine musical 
education, 'which she is still further improv- 
ing. Being their only living child, it is the 
intention of the parents to give her the best 
education obtainable. Mr. Wells has an ex- 
cellent farm and raises grain and good 
grades of stock. His wife is a prominent 
worker in the farmers' institutes. Both are 
earnest and consistent people, filled with the 
love of life ami hope for the future. Mr. 
\\ ells is a sterling Republican, having cast 
his first vote for Abraham Lincoln, and takes 
great interest in the success of his party. 
He is one of the strongest workers for party 
success in the county, and wields great in- 



272 



COMPENDIUM OF BUn'.R.irUY. 



fluence through his high character and per- 
sonality. In the fall of [884 he was the can- 
didate of his party for county commissioner, 

and was easily ck-ctcd and continued to serve 
with distinction for ten years, Iiis election 
and re-elections attesting the confidence of 
his fellow citizens in Ms judgment and 
honor. The family are members of the 
United Brethren church, of which lie has 
served as trustee and steward. 1 [e is a mem- 
ber of Lake View Lodge No. [64, Knights 
<>!' Pythias, of Silver Lake, and is one of the 
strong intellectual, moral and practical fac- 
toi - "t* the county. 



.M LVESTER BARBER. 

The subject of this memorial i- another 
of the old soldiers whom it gives the I 
ian the greatest pleasure t" place on n 
This should be done before it is too late to 
get the full particulars from their own lips. 
Their sacrifices were too Ot to de- 

ample mention in the paves of history. 
It meant a great deal to quit all pursuits and 
ff to war with the chances against him 
of ever coming hack, or if he came hack 
to do s, , with shattered health for the re- 
mainder of his life or in a crippled condition. 
But such was the chance taken willingly by 
Mr. Barber; in fact, he seemed to enjoy tak- 
ing chances for Uncle Sam. for he enlisted 
three several times. Let lis learn a little 
more about this gallant Her. He 

comes of mixed Scotch ami English 
which fact in a large measure accounts for 
his courage and hardihood. [lis father's 
people were English and his mother's were 

h. Subject was horn in Seward I 
ship. Kosciusko county. October _m. 1845, 



his parents being Milo R. and Marinda 0. 
(Butler) Barber. Grandfather Rosw 
Barber was a native of England and crossed 
the ocean to Massachusetts when he was 
young man. He there met and married a 
lady of that state and they were the parents 
ot the following children: Laura. Sylvia. 
Milo R.. Nancy and Myron. Roswell was 
farmer and his children were brought up 
a farm. Milo received a fair education an 1 
upon reaching manhood married Miss But- 
ler. At tlu sixteen years he left his 
father's home and began learning the tan- 
ner's trade. A few years after his main; j 
which occurred in New York, lie started. 
the West and in due time landed in Warsaw, 
Indiana, coming as far as he could on the 
Wabash & Erie canal. He there secured an 
ox team and brought his family and house- 
hold goods to Kosciusko county, arriving in 
[838, having entered eighty acres in the 
dense woods. Two years later he built a 
log cabin on the land and placed his family 
therein and began to clear off the heavy tim- 
ber, lie was one of the first settlers in this 
part of the county ami at that time his place 
was part of a wilderness, tilled with wild 
animals, lie was a man of great physical 
Strength, and in the early times was a sup- 
porter of Andrew lacks, , n and the Demo- 
cratic party, hut upon the repeal of the Mis- 
iri compromise he joined the Whigs and 
later the Republicans, and remained with 
them until his death. He was the first trus- 
of Seward township, being appointed 
first and later elected, and served as such for 
six years. He soon became known through- 
out the county for his sterling qualities and 
was finally brought out by his party as 
candidate for county commissioner lie 
was triumphantly < such 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



273 



ii six years and performing while thus en- 
gaged many important acts for the benefrl 
of the county, lie was an active member 
of the Presbyterian church and was a pow- 
er for good in his community. He lived to 
a great age, living with the highest respect 
of everybody at the age of ninety-six years, 
three months and sixteen days. He Became 
the father of eighteen children, as follows: 
Abi ( '.. who became the wife of Isaac 
Brockway and lives in Kansas: Sophronia, 
whn married James Reed and lives in Mar- 
shall county, Indiana: Charles, who married 
Barbara A. Hoover and is deceased, was .1 
private in the Twenty-eighth [owa Infantry 
in the Rebellion and served three years; 
Myron F., who married anil lives in Ne- 
braska, served in the Twentieth Indiana In- 
fantry; Mill 1 R., fr., whn married May Ann 
Swalley and lives in Oklahoma, served in 
the Twenty-sixth, One Hundred and Thirty- 
eighth and ( )ne Hundred and Fifty-second 
Regiments Indiana Infantry: Calvin S.. 
whn married Hannah Dancer and lives at 
Newport, Nebraska, served in the Twentieth 
and Twenty-sixth Regiments Indiana In- 
fantry, in all about three and a half years ; 
Sylvester, subject; George, who wedded 
Lena Miller and is now deceased, served in 
the ' me Hundred and Twentieth Regiment 
Indiana Infantry for three years: Edwin, 
who wedded ^.ngie Bailey and lives in Mar- 
shall county, Indiana: Then m L., who mar- 
ried Anna Herold, lives in this township. 
\s will be observed above, six of the Barber 
boys, when the Civil war broke out, enlisted 
in the army and served substantially until 
peace was declared. They were all hardy 
and daring fel.ows and made ideal soldiers. 
They were present in nearly all the principal 
in. vements of the war and suffered intense!} 



from the severe campaigns and the hard- 
ships generally. Sylvester Earlier was reared 
upon his father's farm, receiving a fair edu- 
cation and learning the meaning nf hard 
work. At the age nf sixteen years he en- 
listed in Company F. Twelfth Indiana In- 
fantry, under Captain Reuben Williams, and 
served as a private for eighteen months, dur- 
ing which time his company participated in 
the battle nf Richmond, Kentucky, where he 
was taken prisoner and kept for three days 
ami was then paroled and returned to the 
service, subsequently fighting at Jackson, 
Vicksburg, Missionary Ridge, etc. He then 
was obliged to leave the service owing to 
failing health and returned home, hut re- 
covering himself and feeling the old fire re- 
turn, and having regained some of his 1. st 
weight, which was lint eighty-four pounds 
when he came hack, he again enlisted, six 
months later, in the One Hundred and 
Thirty-eighth Regiment Indiana Infantry 
and took the held, hut was placed mi guar..! 
duty for one hundred days, lie again re- 
turned home, hut as soon as he had recov- 
ered himself a little he again enlisted in. the 
Twenty-sixth Regiment and served with the 
same until the end of the war. While with 
the last regiment he was under fire for thir- 
teen days at Mobile, Alabama. He was mus- 
tered nut at Vicksburg in December, [865, 
and returned to his father's farm. He 1: 
draws a pension nf fourteen dollars per 
month for the health he Inst in the service 
oi his country. His military record is a 
splendid one. showing his intense loyalty to 
the old flag, and his bravery in battle and his 
endurance in the harassing campaigns. He 
was only about twent) years 1 Id at the close 
of the war. Before he was a voter or a citi- 
zen in the eyes of the law he had served 



'■74 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



about tin sen ice i if hi- coun- 

try .Hi- d ami that of his 

brotl ■ er render sacred the 

family name in the ami. le United 

Mtcr the war lie began i" work by 
iter took a trip thr 
Michi Iowa, returning ami going to 

work on hi- father'- farm in 1869. The 
follow r he married Mi-- Clarcie K. 

daughter of Daniel Stevens, a pioneer of this 
county and an Englishman by descent. 5 

him three children: Alii. who married 
George Rider and resides in this township; 
Walter, who married Amanda Roberts and 
lives "it hi- father'- farm; Arthur, who 
wedded Mi— Ida Harold and live- in Illi- 
nois. Hi- wife having died. Mr. Barber 
married, in 1SS1. Minerva J. Callahan, who 

nted him with one child. now 
Mr. Barber i- a Republican, and was elected 

ee in a Democratic township. In that 
capacity he did hi- township much § 
improving the schools ami schoolhouses and 

hening tl I year. 1 le i- a mem- 

ber of the United Brethren church and one 
of the most prominent of the county's citi- 
Mr. Barber has two old parchment 
sheepskin deeds, one bearing the dal 
April 1. 1N4,;. and the signature of Presi- 
dent John Tyler. This i- the third deed 
found in the county -1' Kosciusko by the 
genealogist and i- a valuable souvenir and 
relic in the Barber homestead. 



I \» < 11: ( )RIEN DEAT( >N. 

ty, ( )hio, became the meeting 

destined to become united 

and t" he the ancestors of a large and promi- 

I >eati n lamiK . Antnrd 



reunions of that family are held in Miami 
county, Ohio, members to the numbet 
hundred attending, all being tin 

ndmother, who, a 
\. with nine children, came from Bote- 
tourt unity. Virginia, to Clark county, 
in iSj'p. William, the f her 

children, wa- then aged fourteen, a' 
the youngest, w ix months "hi and is 

\ surviving member of that fam- 
ily, he still living in Clark county, Ohio. 
William married Catherine Leflfel, of 
Springfield, Ohio, and their son, Ge 
W.. married Frances C. Fortney, a dam 
ter b Fortney, who came in: 

m Y'>rk county, Pennsylvania, in 
1835, and married into the Knoop family. 
of Miami county. George VV. ami Frances 
( '. Deaton were the parents of Jacob < >. 
Deaton, who wa- born in Clark county, 
( >hio, August 26, [858. The paternal and 
maternal grandfathers of the subject were 

respectively William Deaton. who 
in Clark county. Ohio, and Jacob Fortney, 
who died in Kosciusko county. Indiana, 
X' ivember _•. i88< 1. 

\\ . I teaton, the father of the im- 
mediate subject of this -ketch, may he 
d among the pioneer- of Kosciusko 
count), lie wa- one of the stalwart fig 
of his day and aided largely in the develop- 
ment of the beautiful and fertile section of 
the state. He was horn in Clark county, 
Ohio, October 15. 1833, one year after the 
if the famous I '-lack Hawk war. and 
cared in his native county, attaining 
sturdy manho d. Hi- early educ 
I the kind that all hoys of hi- day re- 
ceived, rather limited in it- scope, the three 
mprising the usual curriculum. How- 
ever, what he lacked in 1 k learning was 




JACOB O. DEATON FAMILY GROUP 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGR.ll'IIY. 



275 



ompensated For b) a plentiful supply of 
inergy, determination and good every-day 
ommon sense. During- the exciting and 
times of the threatened secession the 
tome of George W. Deaton was a meeting 
dace for those loyal to the union and am- 
itious for the country's good. Under these 
nfluences he was imbued with the spirit of 
ism and gave his heart and voice in 
arnesl support of the union. He was dele- 
ated i" secure substitutes for the army, and 
1 1 Si. _• assisted in raising a company. He 
ad followed farming as an occupation in 
'lark county until 1863, when'he secured 

tract 'if land in Kosciusko county, Indi- 
n.a, the place which is now the home of his 
m. Jacob O. With some assistance from 
is father-in-law he secured two additional 
act>, making in all two hundred and sev- 
ity-five acres, ami, although as a young 
an he started out with very little, at the 
me oi his death he was in very good cir- 
imstances. He was a God-fearing man 
id < f exemplary habits, and his counsel 
as frequently sought by his friends and 
iighbors. In religion he was a devout Vie- 
wer in the dogmas and creed of the Meth- 
lisi Episcopal church, and was liberal in 
s support of that society. In politics he 
as a stanch and uncompromising Repub- 
•an and was earnest in his advocacy of the 
inciples ,,f that party. He died June 30, 
J78, and his remains lie buried in Mt. 
nt cemetery, ('lay township. His de- 
)ted wife also sleeps beside him in the city 

the dead and a beautiful stone marks 
ear last resting place. They were the par- 
its of the following children: William 
thin, who died December 25, 1S71 : Jacob 
.. whose history follows; Mary Belle died 
ctober 10, 1862; John K., a farmer near 



Claypool; Sherman S.. of Urbana, Ohio, 
late prosecuting attorney and a member of 
the state board of pardons; he attended the 
Ada (Ohio) normal school, was a teacher 
in ( ttiio and Indiana, read law and practiced 
in Ohio and was pronounced a successful 
prosecutor; Ulysses S. C. a surgeon in the 
Philippines, stationed in northern Luzi in, is 
a graduate of the Louisville Medical Col- 
lege; he was located in Thackery, Ohio, 
when he took the examination admitting 
him as a surgeon to the army, and was one 
of two out of forty who passed; he was in 
the Philippines with General Funston, and 
in 1901 received a wound; Cyrus B. owns 
the old homestead; Charles G. is a farmer 
near Claypool. 

At the time of his father's death Jacob 
I )eaton was in his twentieth year and' the re- 
sponsibilities of the farm fell upon hint and 
his mother, who was left with two hundred 
and seventy-five acres of land, but with 
seven thousand dollars indebtedness. She 
remained in control, being administrator, 
and wisely decided to stay on the farm. She 
was ambitious to educate her children and 
this appeared to her the best way to provide 
the means. Due to her good management 
and the able assistance of Jacob in five years 
the debt was canceled. The two sons, Sher- 
man S. and Grant, were sent to school, this 
cutting down the force on the farm to four 
sons, Jacob being manager. He was well 
fitted for these responsibilities, for his father 
had trained him and had placed much con- 
fidence in his judgment. He continued in 
management of the farm for seventeen 
years. Every means for improvement was 
practiced, the crops diversified and the farm 
Kept will stocked. The estate grew to four 
hundred and forty acres of land and three 



2 ; 6 



COMPENDIUM OF HloCR.U'HY 



thousand <]■ 'liar-, worth of personal pr< 
ertv. clear of < lc-l>t . while at his father's 
death the seven-thousand-dollar debt had 

ered abi ut all. and this is evidence 

»b's success. The family now desiring 
a division <>i their interests, the land was 
divided int.' m\ tract- and an amicable ad- 
justment of ; 11 the affairs arranged, Sher- 
man selling hi- share to Jacob, whose part 
includes the original tract secured by hi- 
father. 

In r868, when Jacob was onlj a boy, he 
heard speeches bj James V Logan, which 
appealed to him with lasting influence and 
in his first vote to the present time he has 
been a Republican and a worker along ; 
litical lines. From [890 to 1900 his county 
honored him as central committeeman. I 
December .}. 1900, he assumed the responsi- 
bilities of county commissioner for the 
southern district of Kosciusko county, his 
colleagues I vid Poor, of Etna town- 

ship, and Egbert Gawthrop, of Van Buren 
tow nshi|>. 

()n the _'i-t • f August, I**.}. Mr. i 
ton was united in marriage with Miss M, 
1 'auffman. the daughter of Rev. John (.Huff- 
man, an Evangelical minister who was well 
known in this county. The latter was lx.rn 
April 15. [816, and died August 8. 1889 
the age of seventy-three years, three months 
and thirteen days. Mrs. Deaton w 
in Berrien county, Michigan, May 14. 1861, 
ared and educated in Indiana. 
Fi 1 al I si two decades have Mr. and Mrs. 
ji airney together and 
nobly have the) st,,„| side by side in the 
labor of creating their rtable home. 

Mrs. 1 ' e is her paradise ami her 

children are her pride. She is a lad) 

dial and pit dress and her many 



friends always find a heart) welcome to her 

>e parents are endeavoring 
their children good, practical educatio 
Their children, briefly mentioned, are as fol- 
lows Ge rge \\ '.. the eldest, - finished 
the common-school course and is now at- 
ling the high school. In his school work 
he is especially Strong in mathematics and 
history, him A. Logan has completed the 
tmination of the eighth grade in the corn- 
school. Florence E. is pursuing the 
venth <^rade and is very fond 
Fluella Belle is in the sixth grade 
and is fond of the study of language. Fern 
is in the fifth grade, Sherman Blaine in 
third grade, and Ruth Agnes and < >ri< 
Beverage are at home and have not yet ar- 
1 ived at school ag 

Both Mr. and Mrs. Deaton are members 
of the Claypool Methodist church, of which 
treasurer and also a member of the 
hoard of trustee-, lie is a member of the 
its of the Maccabees, Tent X". 83, and 
las been an active lodge worker. Mrs. 
I leaton is a member of the L. O I . M.. X". 
1 1 13, and is court commander. 

In the official capacity of county com- 
missioner Mr. Deaton has evidenced his 
high business capacity and stands well at 
the fn>nt as a successful overseer 1 f the 
county's interests. During his incumbency 

en erected twenty-five - 
arches over the streams of the county, the 
county buildings have been kept in a most 
excellent conditii n and the public highways 
were never in better condition than at the 
nt time, lie is . me of thi : men 

of the count) and his influence has beet 
ii. the advancement of the county's intei 

mg characteristics mark the 
members of the Deaton fami 11 the 



COMPEXDIUM OF BlOGRAl'lIY. 



'-77 



jreat-grandmother, who. with a babe in 
inns and several small children, braved the 
lardships of a new country, down through 
he line of descendants who show by what 
hey have accomplished that they were 
eared in reverence of home, country and 
iod. 

The following two obituary notices are 
ure inserted as being especially apropos in 

* 'j nection with this sketch : 

"Eva, wife of the deceased Rev. John 
"auffman, was born in Juniata count}'. 
Vniisvlvania. March 25, [833, and died at 
lii' residence of her son, John Cauffman, in 
ilaypool, Indiana, August 29, 1897. She 
ras the mother of nine children, two de- 
eased, seven living, the names of the latter 
eing Michael, John, Levi, Pierce, Mealy, 
favina and Cora. She was converted in 
arly youth and in 1856 united with the 
hurch of the Evangelical Association, of 
fhich she remained a devoted and faithful 
•.ember until her death. When she was told 
hat her days were few on earth, she said 1 
3 her children. 'Be good and meet me in 
eaven." The home and community will 
liss her. She leaves an aged father, seven 
hildren, a number of grandchildren and two 
p tliers and two sisters, besides relatives 
nd friends to mourn her departure. Her 
ernains were interred in Gospel Hill cem- 
tery. by the side of her husband, Rev. 
anies Wales, of Rochester, Indiana, officiat- 

ig." 

"Frances C. Deaton was born in Clark 
ounty, Ohio, May 5. [835, a daughter of 
acob ami Anna 1 Knoop) Fortner, and died 

• camber u. [894. She was wedded to 

■ \\ 1 (eaton March 9, [856. Mr. and 
!rv Deaton moved to Clay township. Kos- 
iusko county. Indiana, in March. 1863, and 



located on a farm, and by industry and 
economy succeeded in obtaining for them- 
selves and family a comfortable home. The 
deceased entertained a happy disposition 
and exerted herself in making everybody 
comfortable around her. Ere the sunbeams 
fell aslant from its noonday splendor, June 
30, 1878, her husband and faithful com- 
panion wa> called from the active duties of 
this life. Left as she was with her six sur- 
viving sons, she maintained the dignity and 
sobriety of a mother's station, giving to the 
needy and contributing to worthy and re- 
ligious causes. She affiliated with the Meth- 
odist Episcopal church and was a faithful 
and consistent member. She bore her suf- 
ferings bravely, until she was called upon 
to lay down the burdens of life. Her so- 
journ here was but the dalliance of a stray- 
ing spark, adrift from the central fire of love 
to which it has returned. 

"Though all is hushed in death's black night. 
With hands, soft folded, now at rest 
In sweet repose upon the breast, 
The soul has found the morning's light." 



GEORGE L. HUFFMAN". 

The problems of clearing the timber 
from the land and of tilling the soil thus 
brought out to the sunlight were not the 
only ones with which the early settlers had 
to contend. He required lumber — boards — ■ 
for various purposes, and accordingly saw- 
mills were early established in all pan- of 
the state on every considerable stream. Tt 
was necessary that the stream should be 
large enough to afford the necessary water 






UPEXDIUM OF HIiniRAPHY 



for at least a portion of tl ,vhich 

time ii was the custom for the farmi 
haul theii the mills . >r t- • sell th< 

tn the miller and buy the boards. Thi 
farmer secured the plank and boards re- 
quired for i\" eds, barns, etc. Later 
-team mills took the place of the early water 
mills. The subject of this notice h 
ted a saw-mill for many years and is thor- 
oughly acquainted with the business. He 

born in Wabash county, Indiana. 
tember 26, 1842, and is the son of William 
B. and Kizziah (Tabler) Huffman. The 
Huffmans came from Virginia ai 
in Ohio in the early history of tli.it 
They removed to Delaware county, Indiana, 
in 1832, and afterward came to Wabash 
county in 1842, where a farm was b 
near North Manchester. Here William B. 
Huffman passed the remainder of his days. 
He followed the occupation of farming 
built up a good property and an estimable 
name. The country was very wild when he 
first came here, and the wolves and 
savage animals often gave him great trouble 
killing off the small -lock and making it 
very dangerous for children to l>e abroad, 
especially at night time. A heavy timber 
covered the land and his life was spent in 
clearing it 1 iff. He pi ssessed excellent quali- 
f heart and mind and could, with the 
proper advantages, have risen to a high p ■- 
sition in the affairs of men. lie died in 
by all. To him were born six 
and si\ daughters, a- follows: 
Cynthia, the wife of Hiram Elliott, lived in 
Wabash county, but both husband and wife 
are now deceased: Nancy, who married 
! Brothers, lived in Wabash count) and 

both are deceased; Henderson J. married in 
Wabash countv. hut his wife i- dec* 



and he 1 les in I ! • i\\ nship; 

Letha, wife of Abram Baker, i- 
hut lived in Harrison township; Eliz; 

.me the wife of Joab Martin, both 
lived in Wabash county; Charles 
M., who therine Cappis 

1 ami his widow lives in Wabash coun- 
ty : Louisa, d< Peter 
Kreechbaum and lived in Wabash county; 
Mary M.. who married Perry West, de- 

1. lived in Wabash county; Albert, who 
married Nora Male, lives in Wabash, Indi- 
ana: George I... subject; Andrew w< 
Frances Steele and both are deceased; Will- 
iam Ii.. Jr., who died in infancy. 

George Lewis Huffman spent his youth 
on his father's farm, and received in the 

•ime a good education, for he was 
quick with hi- books and took delight in 
learning. He mastered the studii 
common schools and began to teach, having 
obtained a certificate from the county super- 
intendent. In all he taught four term- and 
wa- highly successful. He remained with 

ither until he was twenty-five yeai 
hut during the four year- after he reached 
the age of twenty-one he rented his father's 
farm, and during that time was united in 
marriage with Miss Sarah Murphy, born in 
Ohio October 30, 1847. '" tms marriage 
three children were born: William I"., born 
December 26, [869, died in [892; I.illie 
May. lxirn February 10, 1*74. is now the 
wife of Reuben W. Uplinger and liv< 
Harrison township: Louretta, horn April 
i.v 1884, an accomplished young lady. Mr. 
Huffman i- in comfortable circumst 
Hi- busil \ -milling, in which he has 

been engaged since 1870, and thi- being a 
heavily timbered country, he ha- sawed an 
imm< ntitv of logs. He came to this 



COMPENDIUM OP BIOGRAPHY. 



279 



■mnitv in October, [869, and here he has 

iince remained. In politics he is a stanch 

lemocral and take-- a keen interest in the 

mccess of his party. Fraternally he is a 

nember of Mentone Castle, K. P., and Kos 

:iusko Lodge, No. 62, I. O. O. F., at 

A arsaw. 

•*—+ 

JOHN WARREN. 

Among the successful stock men of this 
. .u 1 it \ is die subject of this brief notice. 

[aving grown up on a farm and handled 
tock all his life, he is familiar with that 
lass of husbandry. It requires something 
nore than carelessness to -elect the best 
nimals in any herd and to rear them in such 

manner that the best points will be brought 
nt and emphasized. As the best stock 
irings the best price, the best farmers make 
t an object t<> raise the higher grades, know- 
ng that the market will be the better for a 
;i\en effort and outlay. All these important 
toints are borne in mind by all good stock 
aisers. Then there are. the questions of 
eeding, watering, salting, stables and the 
>est lime to market animals. It is true that 
lie best farmers study the market quota- 
ions of stock in the principal cities, and by 
o doing very often receive the reward of 
heir watchfulness in a much more satis- 
actory price for their products. This is 
rue ''i the grain product- a- well as those 
.1 the yards. Subject manage.- thus to not 
mly get the best stock, but also to get the 
test price, lie was born in Chester town- 
hip, Wabash county, July [3, 1855, and is 
he -hi of Samuel and Maria I Miller) War- 
en. The family of the Warrens is of Ger- 
nau descent and came from Pennsylvania to 



Ohio in the pioneer period. The Millers 
were also of German descent and from the 
same state. The parent- of subject grew un 
in the Keystone state and were there mar- 
ried. Soon after their marriage they deter- 
mined ti 1 ci mil' n 1 the great \\ est, where land 
wa- cheap and where a home could be built 
up at the expense of little money and con- 
siderable labor. They accordingly put all 
their possessions in a wagon and drove 
through to Adams county. Indiana. He 
rented land for several years. In 185 1 or 
1852 he removed to Chester township, Wa- 
bash coimtw where he purchased a tract of 
land and lived thereon until 1864, when he 
came to this county and bought eight}- acres 
in Seward township. He remained on this 
farm for ten years and then sold it and pur- 
chased another south of Yellow Creek lake, 
and there lived until his death. His widow 
survives him and lives on the old place, be- 
ing yet. at the age of seventy-six years, quite 
stn ng and active. At the time of his death, 
in 1895. he xvas ni comfortable circum- 
stances and was well known and universally 
respected. He was a successful farmer and 
aii honorable man. For many years prior 
to his death he was a member of the United 
Brethren church and was active and con- 
sistent in church work. He helped to build 
the church of that denomination in this 
neighborhood and was a liberal contributor 
to all worthy secular and Christian enter- 
prises. Their children were as follow-: 
Sarah J., wife of Reason Rickel, resides in 
Seward township: Sylvester, who married 
Jane Pontius, lives in Seward township; 
William, who married Alice Geich. resides 
in Wabash count}-; Robert, unmarried, lives 
wiili his mother in this township; John, sub- 
ject; Mary, the wife of Jefferson Regenos, 



28o 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



lives in Seward t"\\ nship; 1 [arriet, deo 
who was tlie wife of John L. Parkei 
Seward township; Ellen, the wife of Syl- 
veste - in Seward township; 

Margaret, the wife of Riley Seacore, li 
Franklin township; Eliza, the wife of Will- 
iam Lower, resides in Harrison township. 
John Warren was a lad of nine years 
when he came to this county. He -pent hi- 
youth on the farm and became familiar with 
hard work, learning all the details titat now 
serve him so well in his stock operal 
Upon becoming a man lie married Miss 
Julia Stoffer, who bore him two children 
and then passed away. The children arc 
Etta, horn August 24, [880, who became the 
wii'e of Frank Hill and lives in Clay town- 
ship; Allie, horn ( (ctober 4. [882, who mar- 
ried William Huffman and lives in Seward 
township. Mr. Warren- first wife died in 
[887 and in [890 he wedded Mi-- Jane 
C'nliie and by her has two children: Me- 
lissa, who died in infancy, ami Henry, who 
dieil at the age of eleven years. The sub- 
ject ha- made a line success of life and i- 111 
the enjoyment of a competency. lie In- 
made farming and stock raising a specialty, 
and i> one of the best stock judges in the 
county, the most of hi- money having been 
made on stock. He make- a specialty of 
Xornian horses, Poland China ho<, r s and 
shorthorn cattle. He and his wife are peo- 
ple of exceptional worth, and all who have 
the honor of their acquaintance ascribe to 
them unusual intelligence and high moral-. 
Mr. Warren i- a Democrat and ha- Keen 
active in the councils of hi- party, having 
served a- delegate to tin- count) conven- 
tions, etc. He is a skillful politician and 
could serve much higher in public affair-. 



Mr. Warren erected his pretty brick 
dencein 1895, and the surroundings bespeak 

the careful and painstaking farmer. 



REV. HENDERSON W. BALL. 

e mini-try i< considered the most holy 
calling to which man can direct his 
tion. The i<i G d, without which idea 

implanted in the human breast life would 

1 -pair, i- the most -acred of all our pos- 
From to civilized 

peoples the hope of immortality is tl,< 
that guides through the stormy sea of life. 
That hope alone render- life worth living, 
providing only that it i- lived according to 
el. It i- such a life that the suh- 
ject of this memorial has lived and i- yet 
living, at the age of eighty year-. He was 
born in Wayne county. Indiana. September 
28, [822, and is the child of William D. and 
Margaret (Widner) Hall. The Ball family 

I mixed Irish and English descent and 
hail- from the < »ld Dominion, where Will- 
iam D. was reared and educated. When he 
reached the age of fifteen year- he removed 
with his father to ea-t Tennessee, but in 1819 
the family came to Wayne county. Indiana, 
though William 1 ). had preceded his father 
there three year-, coming on in 1816, the 
same vcar Indiana was admitted to state- 

h 1. At that time many |>ortion- were 

wholly unsettled and were very wild, the 
heavy timber stretching away hundred- of 
miles with scarcely a clearing and the In- 
dian- ami wild animal- contending for su- 
premacy. William I), had married before 
coming here and u]x>n his arrival ha 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



28! 



tered eighty acres in Wayne county from 
the government, a tract without a stick cut 
on it and covered with an impenetrable for- 
esl of heavy trees. Indian trails ran 
through the woods in every direction, lie 
went t" work and cleared off a spi t for a 
rude log cabin and erected it with the help 
ni the few nearest neighbors. Slowly the 
forest disappeared before the a\ of the 
farmer and crops of grain took the place of 
the tree-. In time the old log cabin was 
replaced with a better structure, and stead- 
:h the pioneer period became a thing of the 
past. Me remained in that county until 
[837 and then sold out and moved to Dela- 
ware county, where he entered one hundred 
and twenty acre- from the government and 
again prepared to clear off the timber. He 
remained on this farm with his family un- 
til the autumn of 1N51, when lie again sold 
in and came to Fulton county ami bought 
>i.\ty acres, partly cleared, and erected a 
substantial frame house thereon. There the 
father and mother passed the remainder of 
their days, the former dying- in 1870 and 
the latter in 1803. The father was an hon- 
est, enterprising and industrious man, and 
had the respect of everybody. He was a 
member of the Dunkard church. To him 
and wife nine children were born, as fol- 
low-: John, Cabin. William, Margaret. 
Henderson. Mary A.. Thomas, Aaron and 
Harriet. Only four of these are living, 
Henderson. Thomas. Aaron and Harriet, 
aged respectively seventy-nine, seventy-four, 
seventy-two and seventy years. Henderson 
remained on his father's farm until he was 
twenty years old, attending the district 
schools and working during the summers 
on the farm. On September 6, [842, he 
married Miss Charity, daughter of James 



and Sarah (Lumpkin) Ball. To tin. union 
two children were born: Sarah [., who 
died at the age of ten years: and Nancy I',.. 
who died in infancy. Upon the death of 
his first wife Air. Ball married Freela Lump- 
kin and by her has thirteen children: Mel- 
vina, born September 25, 184(1, ''i"-' 1 ' aged 
six years; Martha A., born November S, 
1N47. became the wife of William R. Will- 
iam-; Lewis Cass, born December 12. [848, 
is single and lues with his father: William 
11.. born April 1, 1850, died in infancy; 
James 0.. born September 16. 1851, de- 
ceased; Charity M., born July 10. 1853. be- 
came the wife of Calvin Nbyer and resides 
in Akron, Indiana; John Milton, born Feb- 
ruary 27. 1855, married Jennie Meredith 
and lives in Franklin township; Catherine, 
born December 18. 1850. is the wife of 
I icorge Swick and lives near Akron; Thom- 
as E., born June 25, 1858, married Laura 
Robinson and resides in Seward township; 
Laura Alice, born May 24. i860, became the 
wife of Almondo Gast and lived in Akron 
until her death ; Diantha W, born February 
2j, 1862. became the wife of Henry Mere- 
dith and lives in Franklin township ; Jen- 
nie G., born June 1. 1864, is single and re- 
sides at home with her father: Robert Nel- 
son, born May 3. 18(17, married Miss Hilda 
Hammon and resides in Anderson, Indiana. 
Henderson Ball, the subject, grew to ma- 
turity on his father's farm. When eighteen 
years of age he became impressed with the 
story of the gospels and began to study for 
the ministry. He was duly licensed in 1840 
and was placed in charge of a circuit at once, 
his first charge being seven miles wesl 1 I 
bis present place. He remained in active 
service for twenty-one years. During that 
time he baptised about two hundred per- 



2 82 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



sons, married about one hundred couples, 
iilk-d appointments at thirty, twenty-four, 
twenty, twenty-one, fifteen and seven miles 
distance, preached in one hundred and five 
different houses and many times in some of 
the houses, traveled through all sorts of 
weather, at one time making a ride of thirty 
miles when the thermometer registered 
twenty-five degrees below zero at eleven 
o'clock in the morning. The Baptisl church 
to which he belonged and for which he 
labored was greatly benefited by his learn- 
ing, piety, eloquence and tireless energy in 
the cause of the Master. He is a stalwart 
member of society and the friend of all re- 
forms, lie served as notary public for thir- 
ty-live years, during which time he has writ- 
ten much of the legal work for all persons 
in this portion of the county. He has voted 
with the Republican party since its organiza- 
tion in [856. He has been spoken of often 
in connection with the legislature, and dur- 
ing the Rebellion was frequently threatened 
by the Knights of the Golden Circle for. his 
outspoken and loyal utterance-. His son 
Aaron served as a private in the Federal 
army. Mr. Ball is specially distinguished 
by his honesty, firmness of character, piety 
and intelligence. He i- widely known and 
has the unlimited confidence and respect of 
everybody. 



JONATHAN P. ROBINSON. 

One of the mosl evident things to the 
thoughtful farmer i- the fact that life ai 
mi stage is a lied of roses. There are 
thorns, and many of them, along the path 
of farming life, and the lucky Ones are they 
win 1 arc pierced by the fewe-t and avoid the 



nn st. It will probably not he disputed that 
all persons should keep in view the import- 
ant duty of pulling out the thorns from the 
feet <>i those who are less fortunate. They 
may thus not only lay up treasures for 
themselves, hut help strew the pathway of 
si inie less fortunate mortals with roses or 
some other flower agreeable t'i sight and 
smell. After a short time tin- important 
duty will become a pleasure ami then the 
win ile world, in all its harshness and with 
all its thorns, will begin ti bli --1 111 in real 
earnest. The subject of this sketch is 
wli. 1 believes in the motto. "Live and let 
live." He di es nut care to rise if he has 
to walk over the b dies of Others to T SO. 
He believes in In nest emulation and fair 
competition and is willing to march side 
by side with his fellow creature- and take 
his chances with the rest, giving them their 
dues and taking his own. He was born in 
Seward township. Kosciusko county, Indi- 
ana. December 21. 1854. and is a -mi of 
George AI. and Sarah (Luce) Robinson. 
The Robinson family came to this state 
from Kentucky in [826 and located in Clin- 
ton county, where the grandfather. William 
Robinson, entered a tract of land from the 
government. He was of Irish de-cent and 
a man of much force of character, and was 
in all thin;;- a typical pioneer. There he 
resided in the deep woods until [836, when 
he >old out and came to section 0. Seward 
township, Kosciusko county, ami entered a 
heavily wooded tract of one hundred and 
sixty acres. At that time this portion of 
the state was a howling wilderness, filled 
with wild animals and scarce!) less wild 
Indians. Immense forests stretched out in 
all directions and were infested with wolves, 
heai-. foxes, panthers, etc.. and it was very 



COMI'IiXPICM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



?8 3 



difficult to keep sheep and - ther small stock. 
He built a log cabin, placed hi- little fam- 
ily therein, ami began to clear off the 
and brush and soon to plant the crops, lie 
was the first settler in this part of the coun- 
t\ to plant out an orchard, and t<' this day 
some of the trees then planted are living 
and bearing. To him and wife these chil- 
dren were born: Henry, William. Robert, 
John, George, Samuel, James, Andrew. 
Anna. Eliza and Sarah. George M., the 
father ut subject, was twenty years "Id 
when he came to this county, lie t<»>k part 
in all the pioneer doing of the time-, often 
met the Indians and became a good hunter. 
lli- education was received at the old sub- 
scription schools during the winters and his 
work was hard and steady in the heavy 
woods and among the stumps during the 
summers. He married .Mi-- Sarah Luce, 
and they became the parents of the follow- 
ing children: Harvey C, who married 
Miss Rusella Flenar, and upon her death 
he married a second time and now lives hi 
Marion, Indiana; Catherine became the wife 
of A. M. I Hack and lives in Fillmore coun- 
ty Nebraska; Jonathan P.. subject, 
latter grew up "ii his father's farm and se 
cured a fair education. Upon reaching ma- 
turity he wedded Miss Effie F. Hosman, 
daughter of Charles Hosman. She is a na 
tiv< of this county, born April 15. [866, 
and received in her youth a fair education. 
She has presented her husband with two 
children, a- follows: Alzadie I'.., born Au- 
gust ;. [881, wlin ha- keen well educated 
and fitted to teach school. She has taught 
in this township, i- a finished scholar, holds 
a -tau teacher'- certificate, is unmarried and 
resides at home with her parents. Ray- 
mond M., born September t. 1885, en. 

17 



in farming with hi- father, lie also I 
rine 1 1; indeed the whole family 

takes easily and naturallj to learning' and in- 
struction. At the time of his marriage sub- 
ject did n> it have much of this w irld's gi n ids, 
but he went to work t get what would be 
import hi- family and educate 
them, ami has more than succeeded. He has 
ill hnt excellent farm, with good im- 
provements. In politics he 1- an unflinch- 
ing Republican, and take- great interest in 
the success of his party's tickets, being 
of the party's best workers in this part of 
the comity, lie i- > ften mentioned in con- 
nection with some of the county offices and 
would be a credit to any such position. The 
family are intelligent, progressive, moral 
ami have the high' e and respect 

of all who come within the bounds of their 
acquaintance. Air. Robinson is at present 
secretary of the Seward I ' 
tion of this township and has been since its 
organization. He i- also vice-president of 
the Kosciusko Detective Union of the coun- 
ty. The purpose of the organization is to 
protect its member- from h"rse thieves, 
counterfeiters, and house and bam burners. 
Any constab'i 1 1 rganizatii 11 is em- 

powered to arrest without a state warrant. 
Mr. Robinson is prominent in business and 
politics and in all matters affecting this com- 
munity. 



ARTIR'K SMITH. 



Ibis is an age in which the farmer 
stand- pre-eminently ther class 

as a producer of wealth. He -imply takes 
advantag< the warm air. the 

bright sunshii u" rains, and 






COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



with I by virtui 

skill in ! Fts he ci 

. hay, li 

nhab- 
mmercial 
tern 1 - imp< >rtai 

rounded him with many 

hundred The invei 

him the self binder, the riding plow, the 
steam thresher and many other laboi 
the farmer 

! im- 

tliem and made them th and 

imfort. It I thus with th< 

mers. 
He was 
ship, -unty. Indiana. I 

Mark and N 
th. 11. rn and n 

on his rmandbi 

'dry. His educa- 
tion \ t limited, but he has since 
made the mind ar 
ccllent jui I and 

ained 
on his father's farm until he had an 
the . 
this, . 

t\\" years, In 

himself. ll< ither's 

farm on shari 

st im- 

im up i 
■ 

the ladj 
nantha J >• W. 

and Mary • mklin 

ship, her birth havii De- 



cember 17. t86o. Her father v. 

r, having come I . fifty-fiv« 

• and 
ind ai 
i w ith il 

tched a\ 
every direction in an almost unbi 

and there the ru cabin* 

nd the w 
ther wild animals contended with mai 

Bui 
her i 

earlj subject and hii 

wife two children w< 

'.en Lb 
A., Ixtii Ma . ht and in 

sting children. About th 
marriage Mr. Smith d in s 

brick and tile factory on the farm and 
Silver I-ake. and he followed thi* bu 
lie made considi 
money, but in the spring 
out and returned farm, and here hi 

witl 
his farm he I 

terprises. He has operated a threshing ma 
chine for - and lias made n 

by that venture, lie 
of well cultivated land and h.- buil 

which, with his pretl 
dene 11 

Republican in p -f hi 

part unty 

In 18 

imina 
■ 
withdrew hi 
name from the conl He i- the ; 

met and is watchful 
his party's interests. He is a member 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



2*5 



Knights of the Maccabees at Claypool and 
of the Knights of Pythias of Silver Lake. 
He is also captain of the Seward Detective 
Association, an organization funned to pre- 
vent horse stealing and kindred crimes 
which affect the fanner, lie is one of the 
gesl characters in this part of the 
county. 



Jl »SEPH ULRICH. 

There are many old and experienced 

Farmers in Kosciusko county, Indiana, but 

are few who excel in years or experi- 

ph Ulrich, of Jackson township, 

ivho is the subject of this biography. He 

a.- borri in Montgomery county, Ohio. De- 

er 26, 1813, and is a son of Stephen 

ind Ann 1 ( 'hri-tian ) Qlrich. 

The great-grandparents of Mr. Ulrich 

:ame from German rior totheAmer- 

can Revi lution and settled in that part of 

Huntingdon county which has since been 

■reeled into the county of Blair in Pennsyl- 

There the paternal grandfather of 

iubject married Susan Urench, who ] 

lim six children, namely: Joseph, Susan, 

rine, Mary. Stephen and Samuel. 

Stephen Ulrich, father of Joseph, the 

1 of this sketch, removed from the 

the Buckeye state soon 

ids marriage and bought two hundred 

if land near the city of 

'i. in Montgomery county, but after 

arming there for somi i out and 

■ame b Kosciusko county, Indiana. In 

)ctober, [835, there had been a land sale 

rt Wayne, at which Stephen entered 

act in Jackson township, Iv 

county. Joseph, the subject, and a 

er, although they owned nine hundred 



and sixty acres, were desirous "f securing 
six hundred and forty additional acres, and 
"ii Monday, January 3, 1836, started mi 
foot from Dayton, Ohio, for Laporte, In- 
diana, bent mi making further purchases. 
Their route was by the way of Muncie, In- 
diana, and thence t<> .Marion, where I 
were only three log houses at the time, and 
thence to LaGro. At this point they were 
overtaken by darkness and could find no 
means by which they could cross the Wa- 
bash river and felt themselves to be in gi 
luck when they found shelter in a shanty 
in the neighborhood for the night. The 
two brothers had on their persons sevei 
hundred dollars and for a long time sat by 
the lire, but eventually retired to bed, but 
not to sleep. The following morning the 
brothers crossed the river in a skiff and 
forged on to Laporte. via .Manchester. They 
entered three hundred and twenty acn 
government land in Jackson township, Kos- 
ciusko count}-, and then went on to L ; 
sport, Lafayette and Indianapolis, all at that 
time small towns. They walked all the way, 
a distance of five hundred miles, and were 
about five weeks on the trip, crossing - 
ien streams on logs and following Indian 
trails through the woods. Finally Ste 
h returned to Ohio. 
To Stephen and Anna (Christian) Ul- 
rich were burn six children, viz.: Joseph. 
subject of this sketch ; Samuel, who married 
Sarah Ulrich, but is now- deceased; .- 
mon; Stephen, who first married a Miss 
Heeter and secondly Susan Overhultzi 
native of Wabash county, Indiana: J 

married a Miss Heeter and like- 
wise resides in Wabash county: and Eliza- 
beth, wife of Jacob Heeter, of the same 
; v. 






VDIUM 01 ;raphy. 



seph L'lricli learned 

I that 
calling for thirty I at- 

and had 
learned to read and write, but acqu 

hen he w 
in m ' <». 1838, with Miss 

Eliza' hart, \vh mber 

21. 1819, in ' ' 5 fter mar- 

ind in 18 ■'. in Jacl nship 

"\\ twenty-two uid. the farm 

mi which he now lives, which land he cl( 
up and improved with a comfi rtable dwel!- 
nd othei - In the 

winter of [846 he taught the 

ship and received forty-fi 
for hi rvice in | acity. 

• 1 1I1 and Elizabeth (Swihart) L'lricli 
with five children, name- 
Gabriel, l>"rn Decern!* 

eral term-, married Mary 

A. Kreider. and lives in Jackson township; 

len A., born July _■_•. [842, married 

ship; Aai 11 April 11. 1S44. married 

Man J. Miller and died in 1875; Anna 1-"... 

- the w ifi 
Miller; Joseph, born July 1. 1850, married 
beth Miller, and these two families 
likewise live in Jackson township. 

In [848 Mr. l'lricli built a saw-mill in 
which he -awed many thousand feet of lum- 

thousand 
by fin wned a half secti< 11 of forest 

land in and an eight) 

Mr. and Mr-, l'lricli are devout iiicui- 
rman Baptist chun 
which they h n communicants 

ind which they have liberally aided in 



ill) . This 

id it will he seen that the 
1 wife v 

: lrich has 
:i ami i thirty y< 

the church's in: - 
-. hut ha- h. 
it thrive and increase until tin 
River district, a- it was called, had 
divid al districts, a schism 

led for some reason in the 
•1 in 1881. 
Mr. l'lricli ha- never interfered wil 
taken any active part in politics, hut his 
clivities are with the Republicans. IK 
have journeyed over the path ■ 
m hand fi >r sixty-f 
in all probability the oldest couple in K 

1 rtainly none are 
known nor more highly n 
many amiable personal characteristics. Mr. 
L'lricli has ever been a truly publi 
citizen and h:,- is much, in a moi 

for Jack nship 

man living within it- bound: 
e si 
most in public esteem. 



II. IAS A. STOXEBUKNER. 

capable civil official and prominent citizen 
"f Sidney, K county, Indiana, was 

born in Hocking county, ('hi 

and i- James and Julia A. 

'inner. 
Andrew Stoneburner, paternal grandfa- 
ther V. wa- h rn in Germany ami 
nan when he 



COMPEXDICM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



287 



8 he settled in Hocking county, Ohio, 

nl worked by the month for some time and 

en purchased eight}- acres of woodland, 

he at once began to clear up, and on 

hich he erected a log cabin. In 1810 be 

as united in marriage, to which union were 

irn two boys, William and James. Of 

ese sons, William conducted a saw-mill in 

hi . and when he sold out he came to In- 

ana, locating in Wabash county, where be 

ed until 1887, when he returned to Ohio 

d there passed the remainder of his days. 

James Stonebumer was reared on the 

farm and received but a limited edu- 

tion. lie married Miss Julia A. Souders, 

( rerman parentage, and this union was 

iwned with nine children, namely: Amos, 

James, William, Mary, Rebeckah, 

lia, Jesse and John. Of these, three are 

ceased. From Ohio James Stoneburner 

me to Indiana in 18(17 ani ' located near 

berty Mills, Wabash county, purchased a 

rm of one hundred and twenty acre- 1 

id and realized a competency. In religion 

a ( ierman Baptist. 

Elias A. Stoneburner was a young man 

nineteen years when the clouds of civil 

ir gathered over the southern horizon and 

on burst into a deluge of devastating fire.. 

rang Elias, seeing that every able bodied 

in with a particle of spirit would fly to 

ms to protect the flag and save the in- 

jrity of the Union, and his own soul be- 

l fired with patriotism, offered his own 

■vice, and life if need be. He enlisted in 

my II. One Hundred and Fourteenth 

lio Volunteer Infantry, under Captain II. 

ry, and was mustered into the Unite 1 

ates sen ice at ( 'irckw ille, Ohio, v\ hi 

npany was sent to Memphis, Tennes- 

ioin Sherman's army, in November, 



1862. While in the service Mr. Stoneburner 
took part in nine regular battles and thirty- 
two lesser engagements, and among those 
may be enumerated Chickasaw Bluffs, De- 
cember 25, [862, the three days' light at 
Arkansas Post, under tire around Vicks- 
burg one hundred and five days, again at 
Vicksburg, June [6, [863, Indianola, Jack- 
son. Champion's Hill, Grand Gulf, Bruce's 
Lake. Magnolia Hill, in the Red River ex- 
pedition, in which he was in several skir- 
mishes. Ah bile, April 9. 1865, during the 
eight days' battle. He was honorably dis- 
charged and was mustered out at Houston. 
Texas. August 31, 1865, and paid off at 
Columbus, < >hio, h ng after the close of the 
war. His only casualty was a slight wound, 
in his first battle, and as a recompense he 
now receives a pension of eight dollars per 
month. 

On his return from the army Mr. Sti ne- 
burner attended school a year and qualified 
himself for teaching, an ambition which had 
commendably been cherished before he en- 
tered the army. He secured his license in 
Wabash county', Indiana, in [866, and 
taught until 1891. During this period be 
was principal of the Laketon, Indiana, 
schools for eight years and the Ijamsville, 
Indiana, schools three years. Among' bis 
first pupils was Samuel Flora, now himself 
a teacher in K< sciusko county. 

Mr. Stoneburner has been twice married. 
first April 7, 1867, to Miss Alsada Arnold, 
and to this union were horn two sons, Jo- 
seph ( ). and Henry, the latter of whom died 
in infancy. Joseph O., who was a telegra- 
pher, is married to Maggie Xealy and now 
lives in the state of Washington. Mrs. 
Alsada Stoneburner was called from earth 
in [876, and Mr. Stoneburner next married 






1RAPHY 



Mi-- Sarah M. ( 

jamin and Catlu de- 

ildren hi 

A., born A married 

Verbal Torrence and li\e> in Sidn 

rles S., born April 8, 1888; t' 1 
who died when small. 

Si meburner came to K 
- He 

1 Republican in | 

ne an active part in the wi rk of the pirty, 
has been very influential in its councils 

popular with its rank and file. 
I le was townsli r whil< g in 

Wayne county, Illii 

■ . . Indiana, for I 
highway commi two 

rd. In 1894 he 
the peace f< r K< 

thirty- 
hundred and fil 

1" his d 
■ ! to a li -i'l- 

\- a teacher Mr. Stoneburner was 
live duty twenty-five hundred and 

hundred and tweuty- 
_!it dollars and si 1 d many 

his pupi ' in vari 

Mr. and M 

the United Brethren church, in which 
M uperintendenl 

the Sunda} and church clerk 

[ the Bil 
member ol G. A. R 



111! — 

ry in Mini •!-. He 1 

! ami prominent wherever he has 

than his. 



JAMISON. 

This well-known citizen was the 

rty yeav- 
•r the preservation of the Union » 

indertook t" separate the 
in the 
lisli a public in the southern ha 

the United me km >v : 

suit — how their attempts tailed after 

. warfat fter filling 

land with cri] He 

•rn in I >auphin ci unity, I 
May - i i> the child 

Anna ( Raj 1 Jamison. The [ami- 

German and Irish predominate 
family claim a Germanic descent. J 
Anna Jamisi in wei ; in Pent • 

and there met and were man 
some time afterward they came t" the \ 
Five children rn to them, as 

Samuel, the subject, born in 1830: Mary 
Ann. born November ,v>. 1831, 
1834 : < ieorge W . born Febru 

1 (aniel, born Novembi 
1835, died in 1837; John, born Januar 
John J 
naker's trade, which he worked 
md at the pil 
the winter-. His life was spent wil 

at the 
ear-, v. 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



;«9 



le hatter's trade, and after having served 
is apprenticeship worked at that trade for 
wars. In [846 he left 1 'ennsyl- 
ania and came to Kosciusko county, Incli- 
na. walking mosl 1 f the way. and located 
imself in Clay township; he remained with 
is uncle during the succeeding winter. In 
ie spring of 1847 ne went to work at the 
irpenter's trade, and assisted in building 
ie old Pelton Hotel, the first hotel building 
1 Warsaw. During the following winter 
e worked for Thomas Popham for fifteen 

3 per month and continued for him 
tree years, laying aside his earnings. On 
ctober 24, 1854, he was united in marriage 
ith Miss Sylvia A. Calkins, a native of 
ev\ York, and t.> this marriage f<>ur chil- 
ren were born: Florence M., born August 
1, 1855, is the wife of John Roberts and 
isides in Arkansas; Aleth E., born June 10. 

became the wife of Emanuel Row en 
id lives in Lordsburg, California; Charles 
., born June 30. [867, married in the 
outh and resides in Louisiana; Franklin 
. K.. born March 9, [872, who also mar- 
ed a Southern lady, lives in Louisiana. 
e was bom in Nebraska and ad the others 
i Iowa. After his marriage Mr. Jamison 
orked a year for Mr. Popham at the car- 
inter's trade, and then removed to Iowa 
id entered forty-eight acres of land. Later 
j sold out and followed the carpenter's 
ade two years, and then moved to Johnson 
►unty, Iowa, and continued his trade, and 
bile there he bought forty-eight acres in 
inggold county. Iowa, and was living there 
hen the Rebellion broke out. At its com- 
lencement he enlisted in a company of 
'outs for three month-;, and saw severe 
Lit v- scouting through southern Iowa and 



northern Missouri. Succeeding this be re- 
turned to his family and moved to North 
English and while there enlisted in the 
Twenty-ninth Iowa Infantry, under Th 
II. Benton, colonel, and Andrew Johnson, 
captain, and was sent down on the Red 
River expedition, fighting all the way. 
After that be returned to Little Rock, Ar- 
kansas, and was transferred to Mobile and 
was in the battle and siege of that name. 
He next fought at Blakely, and then was 
transferred to the West and sent to the Rio 
( irande. At the close of the war he went to 
Mexico and then to Xew Orleans and was 
there mustered out in August, 1S05. He 
fought in eleven hard-fought battles, and 
was always ready for duty. He draws a 
pension of six dollars per month. He re- 
turned home and went into the huckster's 
business, continuing thus for two years. 
Later he -Id out in [owa and removed to 
Nebraska audi bought a tract of .me hundred 
and sixty acres near Lincoln and remained 
upon the same for twelve years. While liv- 
ing there his wife died. May jo. 1873. He 
returned to Kosciusko county. Indiana, and 
soon afterward married Mi<s Silena, daugh- 
ter of Samuel and Minerva C. Ball, the 
marriage occurring in October; [874. The 
came to this county from Knox coun- 
ty, Ohio, in 1849. They came through in 
wagons and all were required to assist in 
clearing away the heavy timber that covered 
their land. Mr. Jamison is a Republican, 
was at one time a member of the fndi 
cut ( Irder of Odd Fellows, and i> a member 
of Kosciusko Post, Xo. 515. 1 '1. A. R., War- 
saw. In Nebraska he served as deputy sher- 
iff. He lived in Cla ownship, this 
county, for sixteen years, hut eleven months 



290 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



Jit sixty acn lay township. 

prominent and 

by all who have the 



PETER J. HARDMAN. 

reter J. Hardman, one of the vt 
citi 1 ime to Koscius 

county when but a young man. Hi 

-cent, his grandfather having 

•1 born in Germany. Hi- father, John 
Hardman, was born in Virginia, but li 
in Lewis county, West Virginia, the 
pan of his long life. 1 te married Elizal 
\\ agoner, a West Virginia. He 

I 

I held v 

er\. li 

1. lie died 1:1 Lewis 
nty, \\ 1 inia. in his eighty-ni 

p. |.l [ardi n in Lewis coun- 

ty, West Virginia, r 31, 1819, 

- with his parent- 
Mi. He the 
■ 
bj which': 

ut to make his own 
v and. equipped with a I Idle an 1 

fo r j his father, he cami 

I Ihio, where 1 
rk in a 
ployed about thirty hands, and he I 

tin 

until he trusted with I 

; work, that hing and full 

the cloth. These v ' happy 

For him. In this mill he met Hannah 



C. Finley, a 1 who 

ie hi- v. - * ham- 

tember 13, 

ph M. and Mary M. 
,_Mi; Mr. Hardman remained 

in the mil by that time. 

. he and his wife. 

in tin 

unty, Indiana, where they had 
friend-. He had no definite idea, in coming 
t.» the county, -liat he would do, but 

■ fa livelih 1. He had 1 

means t<- buy a farm, but did buy a h>>nse 

and '" ur nun " 

: witln ut inl 

He was willing !•• work and !>»>>' 

with small Then 

Ile- 
itis property and traded in land until he had 
secured n ' inlc llli> 

..win-' t. it- proximity to Warsaw, became 
1 he laid out Hardman s 

addition I ■'■ he built In 

if his 
pru- 
dent management The 

ts, -ellingr 

only as they increased in val 

\ T the war Mr. 11 

heard and ai his country's 

and served almost tin - in the 

ment. Indiana Volui I 

lie was in tin a and 

hed with Sherman to 

- in the grand review at 

ral and al- 

tunately " c °as 

ie Republican 
1 with prival 




Tv-^Pt^L^X -^ ^t^&K^^U 




&£***£. 



-^T-t^&L-rr 



COMFEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



291 



fairs, willingly allowing cithers to attend to 
public duties. 

I le and his faithful wife have lived quiet 
lives for many years in their pleasant home 
in Warsaw, which they have built and im- 
proved in accordance with their own tastes 
and comforts. On October 24, 1897, they 
celebrated the happy occasion of their gold- 
en wedding. They reared two children, 
both of whom are married. Joseph is a 
jeweler at Rensselaer, Indiana, and Mary is 
the wile of John Stewart, of Denver, Colo- 
rado. One of the great comforts of Mi". 
Hardman's life has been his religion. He 
i- a faithful member and attendant of the 
Methodist church and is highly regarded as 
one whose life is true and consistent. He 
has been a class leader in the church for 
twenty-five years and a member of the of- 
ficial board for nearly sixty years. His wife 
• also a consistent member of the same de- 
nomination, having joined the church when 
about twelve vears of as'e. 



CYRUS MUSSELMAN. 

The subject of this biographical -ketch 
is "He of the most widely-known citizens of 
Jack-iii township, Kosciusko county. Indi- 
ana, and is also one of the most active and 
respected business men whose energy and 
public spirit have placed him in the fore- 
rank of the prominent residents, who 
llj recognize in him an acknowl- 
edged leader in social a- well as publi 
fair-. lie wa- born in Paulding county. 
Ohio, August -'o. [842, the sixth child in 
the family of fourteen thai crowned the mar- 
riage 1 f J 1 hn and Liza 1 Clemmer) Mussel- 



man, natives of Virginia and of German ex- 
tractii m. 

John Musselman, father of Cyrus, was 
reared to the calling of a tanner and was 
also taught s-hoemaking. While ^till a 
young man he left his native state and lo- 
cated in Dayton, Montgomery county, ( Hiio, 
where he married Miss Clemmer. who was 
of Irish descent. Shortly after that auspi- 
cious event he removed to Paulding county, 
where be purchased a tract of timbered land, 
erected a dwelling and such other buildings 
as were needed and converted the tract into 
a first-class farm. He later started a tanyard 
and a shoe shop, and moreover practiced 
medicine to some extent, being a gentleman 
of most versatile qualifications. 

Mr. Musselman was very active in pol- 
itic- and was one of the leading Democrats 
of Paulding count} - , wdiere he served a- a 
justice of the peace for many years. He 
was widely known and universally respected 
throughout the county. He lost his wife in 
1880, and his own death occurred in 1893. 
Their six sons and eight daughters were 
named as follows: David. Amos, Diana, 
.Mary, John. Cyrus. Eliza, Jane, William, 
Minerva, Ira, Ida and two who died in in- 
fancy. 

Cyrus Musselman. the subject proper 
of this sketch, the more important events of 
whose interesting and useful career are here 
but feebly portrayed, wa- reared to agricult- 
ural pursuits on his father's farm in 1'auld- 
mnty, Ohio, and also attended the dis- 
trict -el 1 until old enough to he able to 

handle a "kit," when he was taught 
making. He remained with hi- father un- 
til he hail attained hi- majority and then, in 
1863, decided to »& thing of the great 

West, lie started fot Missouri, where he 






(PENDIUM O: ;RAPHY. 



r, with • 
jouri i lifornia, 

with him h< 

ty, I' 

yer in a Inn 
well satisfied with tin ;i that he re- 

he had 
1 any ti the bus 

he had |'- inherited something of his 

\-ain there may have 
.tractive in Kosciusko 
county th . saw-logs and saw-mills, 

.}. the year of hi 
rival here, hi r, as his 

. Miss M inner, w 

ents had c ihio to K 

ty. In il years p 1 hail 

entered from 
which Mr. M 
childn 

and .\ dusselman, name- 

1} : A I. la V.. Laban ( '. and < ynthia 

acquit , and was 

imer- 
cial S Cjuincy, I 

a number 

of \> in Indiana. Pennsyl- 

•nl in the 

mud state married a Miss Carter; he 

per for a lumber and 

furniture company in the Golden state. Ida 

orn in 1867. i- the wife <<i Ira Tillman 

and : Indian Territi 1 > . 1 

rn in 1872, re 

comn 

I for hi 
Cynthia 1 ; ... win. was lK)rn in 1876 

idy, taught two term-; 



in K< • ty. ami was 

Mrs. 
I in 
. Mr. Musselman 
married Mrs. Frances A. 1 Lenwell 1 B< 

il> resp< 
ship, win • :i name well, but 

union ha- not b< 
sj. However, Mr-. Musselman w 
inier marriage the mother of two chil- 
dren, md Frederick, 
who lives with his mother. 

When Cyrus Musselman first married 
he w; condition financially, 

Inn he was abundantly supplied with a cap- 

e in hi- ability t" make his 
through the world. He was tern] 

; and after a few _\ ■ in the 

1, purchased a ti land in the 

lemmer homestead ol 

hundred and lie is 

m farmi 
Mi-, and M 
"i the Churcl .■• n as 

urch. Mr. Musselman is 
d in the Scriptures and 
I thinker, fully capabli 
and 1 - from such literature 

a-- lu litics Mr. Musselman 

'iccn much of 
a partisan and has invariably 1 
come a candid 

frequently 
his nam* 

■ 
and trust. In 1 nal relations Mr. 

Musselman i- a mem' 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



?93 



No. 579, !'". & A. M., in which he has filled 
the honorable office of worshipful m; 
and has represented the lodge in the grand 
lodge; he cherishes this order as second only 
to his church. 

Mr. Musselman is a citizen with broad 
views and of public spirit, and one who 
takes pride in the progress of his township 
and the enhancement of the public weal. 
Well knowing the value of good reads and 1 
bridges to the husbandman especially, as 
well as to the general public, and knowing 
the vital importance of nearly every kind of 
public improvement, he readily aids with his 
purse and influence all projects designed to 
bring about substantia] yet economical ad- 
ditions to such works as undoubtedly tend 
to the o mvenience and add to the comfort 
of the community. He is a warm friend of 
the public-school system and an advocate of 
the employment of the best teachers that the 
school fund can possibly compensate, and 
also Favors the erection of modern school 
edifices when new one- become necessary. 
He was a constant reader, has an excellent 
library for a gentleman residing in a rural 
district, and this i> connected by wire with 
the Sidney Telephone Company's headquar- 
ters, in which company his -on, Laban C 
is a stockholder. Jackson township resi- 
dents may well feel gratified in having in 
their midst a gentleman so advanced in 
thought, so public spirited, so liberal in 
monetary matter- and so interested in the 
welfare of the town-hip in which he has 
• many years of his useful life. Al- 
though he began with no capital in a 
pecuniary sense, he is now among the most 
substantial men of his town-hip. and his 
life's record i- well worths of study by the 



JAMES FISHER, Deceased. 

1 In- genuine representative of the agri- 
cultural development of Jackson township, 
Kosciusko comity. Indiana, was horn in 
Wayne county, Ohio. June 8, 1S17. His 
parents. Stephen and Elizabeth | Newhouse I 
Fisher, descendants of old German Fam- 
ilies who were represented among the col- 
onists of America and who were among the 
bravest of the brave in the struggle For 
American independence. The paternal 
grandfather of subject settled in Virginia, 
whence he removed to Ohio in the early 
period of its history, bringing with him 
Stephen, who had been born in Virginia, 
and the other members of the family. 

Stephen Fisher was a blacksmith in his 
early days and was also engaged in farm- 
ing. He settled in Wayne comity. Ohio, 
and carried on a blacksmith shop in con- 
nection with agriculture until 1S34, when 
he removed to Seneca countv and bought a 
tract of forest land, which he developed into 
a first-class farm. He came to Jackson 
township. Kosciusko county, Indiana, and 
here purchased a section and a half of land, 
or. nine hundred and sixty acres, a consid- 
erable portion of which he cleared up, and 
when he retired was worth about fii 
thousand dollars, which in those days was 
considered to he quite a Fortune. To the 
marriage of Shephen Fisher, in 1800. to 
Mi-- Elizabeth Newhouse, of Kentucky, 
were born five sons and Five daughters, 
namely: Nancy, Susan, Sarah. Elizabeth, 
5, Stephen, Edward, John. Lucinda and 
Robert. 

lame- Fisher, the subject of this skel 
came to Kosciusko o unty, Indiana, in 1836, 
and was one of the earliest settlers in Jack- 



?94 



c OMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



tow nship. 1 [e was then 
and in June. [841, married Miss Sarah 
Rover, a native of Berks county, Pennsyl- 
vania, and of German descent. I \v- 

r he brought lii s bride to Jacks 
township, Kosciusko county, with the I'l- 
rej family as their only neighbors, and Lib- 
erty Mills, in Wabash county, the only town 
within many miles, their grist bei ind 

at the latter 

James Fisher was handy with the ax 
and one of the I ppers in hi- neigh- 

borli i within a few days after his ; 

rival on his farm he hail his limine ready for 
occupancy. The winter was very inclement, 
hut he succeeded in clearing "ft" two hun- 
dred acres of his own homestead and two 
"tin of forty-seven and twenty acres 

respect h 1 

1 1 the marriage 1 f James Fisher and 
Sarah Royer there were born children, 
namely: Elizabeth, Anna. Stephen, John, 
I.ydia. Samuel and James. Mrs. Sarah 
(Royer) Fisher was called from earth in 
[893, and Mr. next married Mrs. 

Katie Sipes. 

Mr. Fisher was a verj indusl rm- 

ind an enterprising business man. and 
one time had accumulated twenty-six til 
sand dollars without any extraneous aid. 
About twelve ; '< however, he 1 

ged in mercantile trade at Packerti n. this 
inty, but on this occasion failed to n ■ 
with his usual sue me in- 

volved to the extent 1 f five thousand dollars, 
all of which he honorably liquidate 
made an 

In politic-, Mr. Fisher \ rat. 

• his first i'-' 

. and vi ited fi ■ 

■lidate from "I >ld 1 lick' >n '-" 



time up leveland's candid 

1 le w his political faith and 

1 faithful in his 1 

rty, and him- 
1 it in I 
the ] irteen year-. In re' 

he w.i- ;i Presbyterian, hut it v what 

late in life that he united with the congre- 
gation at Packerton, wh 
faithfully adhered to and to the support of 
he was a liberal contributor. His 
ity, however, w questi 

even before he became a communicant in the 
church, and hi- word was never in any way 
question* 

M r. Fisher had been a mem- 
ber of L ■ I - & A. M. He was 
widely known throughout Kosciusko coun- 
ty, and wa- recognized as one of the model 
farmer- of Jackson township. He wa- pub- 
irited and was always ready to aid in 
every wa) r the pr - 
motion of th< weal, and 1 

'cd. Mr. Fisher's 

death occurred on the 7th of February, 

and hi- remain- were interred in the 

Packerton cemetery. The estate i- being 

by hi- - nuel. wh" n 

■ id. 



Jl MIX FISHER, hi. 

mown farmer and a; 
■■i )■■ unship, Kosciusko county, ln- 

Wayne county, I 

July Pi. [826. and wa- i Stephen and 

1 Xewh -her. The father. 

1 if Steph< wa- a nati\ 1 many 

and an eai r in < >hio, while the New- 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



295 



house family migrated to Ohio from Vir- 
ginia, also in an early day, and in Wayne 
county, Ohio, Stephen Fisher and Eliza- 
beth Newhouse met and were married. To 
this marriage there were ten children, born 
in the following order: Nancy, Susan, 
Sarah, Elizabeth, James, Stephen, Robert, 
Edward, John and Lucinda. Of these chil- 
dren four are living, three in Kosciusko 
county, viz. : Janus, Edward and Lucinda. 
Stephen Fisher, after marriage, cleared up 
a farm in Wayne county. Ohio, lived there 
several years, then sold out and crime to 
Jackson township, Kosciu.sk c unty, Indi- 
ana, and purchased a tract of three hundred 
and twenty acres in the wilderness, which 
he later cleared up and converted into one 
of the best and must profitable farms in the 
township. It was on this farm that John 
Fisher learned to swing an ax and to pi v\ 
with oxen, and when he became the owner 
of a yoke of cattle he was the proudest boy 
for miles around. 

John Fisher lived upon his father's farm 
until past twenty years of age. when he was 
united in marriage with Mi>s Charity Bills. 
who was born in Seneca county, Ohio, 
March 6, 182X, and there acquired a good 
education. This union was graced with 
seven children, viz. : Robert, born January 
13, 1S47. and now the husband of Ruth 
Kn- iop; Lydia A., wife of Jacob Fisher, who 
is, however, of no consanguinity; Frank, 
born in 1851, is married to Charlotte Fisher 
and resides in Huntington, Indiana: Salome. 
wife of Peter Catlet. residing in Wayne 
township; John, deceased: Marshall, who 
married Ada Stauffer, and resides in the 
Mate of Washington; Silas is married to 
Elizabeth Parrot and lives in Jackson 1 
ship. In 1854 Mr. Fisher came to Kosci- 



usko county, and here was a continuous resi- 
dent up to the date of his death. He had 
inherited, as had his brothers, a quarter- 
section of land, and in 1852 settled on his 
farm, which he cleared up and handsomely 
improved. In [856 the father made a clear- 
ing sale and appointed John as auctioneer. 
At that time the latter was a modest young 
man. but this initiation proved a turning 
point in his career and led to his adoption 
of auctioneering as a vocation. Since [856 
Mr. Fisher conducted twenty-three hundred 
public vendues, ami his services were in de- 
mand for miles around, his average being 
about cue hundred sales per annum. Dur- 
ing Ins residence in Jackson township he 
took part in many log-rollings and house- 
raisings and was an important factor in ad- 
vancing the general prosperity of the t> wn 
ship. 

In politics Mr. Fisher was a Democrat. 
as are also his sons. He served as justice 
of the peace for eight years, he being a very 
popular man in the township, and having 
been elected in a district that usually was 
carried by a Republican majority of sixty. 
lie also served as one of the three trustees 
of his township in the early days, and on 
one occasion settled up an estate of fifty-two 
thous&nd dollars, which occupied his atten- 
tion for several years. Fraternally Mr. 
Fisher was made a Mason in 1856 and at 
the time of his death held membership in 
the lodge at Sidney. Indiana, in which he 
held the position of tyler. When the Patrons 
of Husbandry were flourishing he w 1 
active member and was one of the organ- 
izers of the state grange. Mrs. Fisher has 
long been a member of the Christian church, 
to the support of which .Mr. Fisher was a 
liberal contributor. 






TENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



In January, 1901, Mr. Fisher had 
his dwelling 
but, being a man 1 

fn >m the 
He was widely 
know 11 in : inties, 

and i tleman of more than or- 

dinary intelli 
wherever known. His death occurn 

May, tg araly- 

lli- funeral took place May 4th. and 
1 »f the held in the 

township. 



GILES MILLER. 



fanners in Jackson township, 

mi ire 

-fnl in 1 a reward for his 

ami ii than < iiles Miller, w 

miration of the entire 

Miller is a son of Lewi- and 

Miller born in Clark 1 

t) , Ohi . D( 8, 1830. Jaci ib Mil- 

■: father 1 
Germany, but when a small boy wa 
to the United States by his parents, who 

1 111 Pennsylvania, and thei 
grew \'< man' ! married a nati 

•r\ . He served in the I 
lutionary war. From Peni the 

grandfather and family migr Ohio, 

■ e married, and had horn to him 
ildren: Frederick, Lewis, J 
Samuel, Polly, Catherine, Barbara and 

Miller h rk coun- 

.m.l there married LettU 
a dan • Richard and Susan 



family wen 
Germ; n, while the Garst family came 

1 lolland. Lew is Miller and wife 
childn 

- :' 
ship, where he purch 

wild land, luit also owned 
res in Van Wert 
county, Ohio. Although a mechanic, and 
linarily handy with 
eery successful agriculturist and 
on his Lake township farm in 
the m rle settlers of the 

township. Lewi- and - Miller v. 

the pari en children, namely: An- 

drew. Rebecca, Gi herine, Pho 

Mazy. Julia A., Mary. Luanda. Rich- 

: 
IV ■ there i -till li\ ii 

ie and Richard. 
Miller was a youth 
when hi unty. 

Indiana, hut he even then knew 
handle an ax and greatly aided in clei 
up th< 1111, all 11 with hard 

itinued until he was twen- 
ild. At tli 
working out on his 

In 185 Miller main 

cinda Leffel, a daughl William .and 

Julia Leffel. Mr. Miller 1 

the tir-' 1 his 

farm, when 

ither bought a farm 1 if sixty- 

deep in the f which they 

ipancy in the fall 1 if [85I 

11 until 1864, when Giles 
turned to the old hoil on which he 

since made his hom< 
Lucinda (Leffel) Miller have be< 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



297 



eight children, viz. : Sarah J., who is the 
wife of Henry Eiinkle, of North Manches- 
ter; George A., who married Miss Ida 
Vance, the latter being now deceased : A. L., 
who married Flora Bolin and is living in 
Castle Rock, Minnesota; William L., who 
married Clara Butterbaugh, and lives in 
Seward township, Kosciusko county; 
Charles II.. who married Lizzie Duke and 
lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota; Mary E., 
still single; Samuel E., deceased twin of 
Mary E. ; Esta E., born in [880, is married 
to Blanche Richard, is a painter by trade, 
and lives in North Manchester. 

Mr. ami Mrs. Miller are member- 1 i the 
United Brethren church, in which Mr. Mil- 
ler has 1 .1 trustee for many years. In 
'dr. Miller was fi r a long time a 
crat, but later became a Prohibits 
yet lie voted for McKinley at the last presi- 
dential election. He is widely k 
throughoul Jackson township and is highly 
respected wherever km wn. 



ROBERT HAINES. 

It is the custom with many farmers. 
even in this day of known advantage in 
putting all corn and hay raised on a farm 
into Stock, to sell the grain which they raise 
and only deal to a limited extent in live 
Stock. Time mi that this course is 

unwise, and those farmers who still stick to 
that obsolete custom arc the losers. It is 
found that the best result- are obtained from 
making -,' . ,f live sti ck the first con- 

sideration, and it is nol necessary to 
out that most of the successful farmers 
haw I ng ago tin- practice. Aside 



the improvement of the farm and per- 
haps the dealings in farm-, it is pro! 
the fact that the great majority of the 

wealthiest farmers have obtained all or 
nearly all of their wealth from their deal- 
in live stock. Such at least has been 
the case with the subject of tin- memoir. He 
is a native of Franklin county, Ohio, hav- 
ing been born there October 8, 1852, and is 
the son of Joseph and Elizabeth I. Haines. 
The grandfather of subject was a native of 
the Keystone state and removed to Ohio 
back in the pioneer period. He was a farm- 
er and in the course of his life amassed a 
large property. Hi- son Joseph., the father 
of subject, was reared on the farm and re- 
ceived the usurd education in the subscrip- 
ols. There was no general schoi 1 
fund at that time for the support ,<i schools, 
and all parents who wished their children 
to have the benefits of an instructor were 
required to pay so much for the tern 
each child they sent to a teacher empl yed b) 
others. These schools were called subscrip- 
tion school-. Joseph was educated in one 
of them, which had rude slab seat- and was 
built of logs. To Joseph's marriage these 
children were born: Robert, subject; Vol- 
ney, who died in youth: Joseph M., who 
married Miss Clara Garvin and is a Meth- 
odist Episcopal minister, stationed at Gar- 
rett, Indiana; Jane, who wedded George 
Gochnour and lives in this township: John, 
married Ida Cox and resides in Mar- 
shall county, Indiana: Amanda, who became 
the wife of Wesley Eaton and i- deceased: 
Isabelle. wife of Isaac Cox. a resident of 
Seward township: Mary, who wedded Ed- 
ward Cook and lives in Mishawaka. Indi- 
ana; Frank, who lives with his father in 
Harrison town-hip. Joseph Maim 






PHY. 



liana in lS/2 

tow nship, 

ml indus 
himsi and 

faithful land marl f the 

hurch 
- life and his 

-two 
and faithful wife 

highly res by all who knew them. 

farm and 
lucatii 'ii in I 
Indiana. When he 1 the 

e, working at the same in 
and farming in the sum 

1 from his father, 
it in his early 
In 1878 Robert met and married Miss Alice. 
of Henn and Elizabeth Wirick, 
and to this man child v 

! when thirteen yeai 
irst \\ ife ha\ 

■'. wife, in 1884, Miss M 
iter of William Justice, and 
the} hildren: Anna, who mar- 

ried I larry Meredith and Ii 
>hi|>; Arl ph, Xettie, Mattie. 

Edith and Walter. After hi< marriage Rob- 
ert first rented land and a little later n 
hack home. Soon afterward he secured a 
machine and 1. 

trs. 1 hiring this 
time I his farm, and is nov 

in farming his brothe 

man and has made the most of his 
v in thai 1 le -hip- thi 

four bunches of h 



\. 'imans 

crat, but 

much interest in He 

f the 
ffices. 1 le beloi ; 
the Methodist church and is active in the 



REV. TlloMAS WILEY, 

die ministry i^ the 

.at man it is th 

ed in ail portions of the world. 

earth the 
what the re- 
country that 
not 1: n, even though it may rtot 

iristian, >" the ministi 
whatever title he may have, stands at the 
munity. His calling is re- 
ny other, and all 
ion in his expert I 

up t" 

'■lies his will, and 

communes with him in spirit, and is thus 

sel and advise. 

' 

I loly Writ. i> conclu- 

•nier. wl im for a 

iti"ii through Chri>t. The 

subject of this sketch followed this holy 

calling and was a true servai I and 

1. He was born in 

Henry county, Kentucky. February .^. 1827, 

and was the jamin and I' 

nil Wiley. The Wiley family were 

of Ii Kentucky, 

vcrv early day. They 




REV. THOMAS WILEY 



/^^J^^/i^, 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



299 



moved from Kentucky to Morgan county, 
Indiana, when that portion of the state was 
yet a dense woods. In Kentucky and Indi- 
ana the subject of this sketch was reared to 
manhood and educated. He was even in his 
youth of a pious disposition, and upon reach- 
ing' years of maturity determined to join 
the army of the ministry and spend his life 
in the service of the Master. He believed 
that it was not good for man to live alone, 
and accordingly was united in marriage 
with Miss Sarah E. Scott, of Morgan coun- 
tv, and soon afterward came to Kosciusko 
county and settled in Franklin township, 
near Sevastopol, in 1856. He bought one 
hundred and nine acres on section 5 the fol- 
lowing year. Upon this farm he continued 
to reside until the day of his death. His 
first wife dying January JO, 1873, without 
issue, he married. March 10, 1874. Miss 
Cynthia Cramer, the daughter of Sylvester 
B. and Elizabeth (Dent) Cramer. She was 
horn November 30, [837. The Cramer 
family originated in Maryland and were of 
Germanic descent. Sylvester B. Cramer was 
born near where the city of Baltimore now 
stands, and when a young man was taken 
t' Belmont county. Ohio, and was there 
reared on his father's farm. He received 
a. common-school education and upon reach- 
ing manhood was united in marriage with 
Miss Elizabeth Dent, a neighbor, and to 
them were born two children: Cynthia A 
and George D. The latter married Miss 
Isabella Fulton and now lives on a farm in 
Belmont unity, < Ihio. The mother of these 
two children died November 8, 1839, and the 
father marrying the second time Cynthia 
was taken to raise by an aunt. She was 
given fair advantages and was apt and 
quick at her books, and after finishing the 

18 



common branches attended one term at the 
Lebanon Normal School. At the age of 
twenty-one years she began to teach school 
as a means of supporting herself and con- 
tinued thus until 1868 in that vicinity, when 
she came to this county. During this time 



she read a great deal, cultivated 



hid 



and made herself proficient as a teacher. 
Expecting to follow teaching as a life pro- 
fession, she did not spare herself and ac- 
quired wide and varied learning. After 
coming to this county she continued teach- 
ing until 1873, when her hand was sought 
in marriage by Rev. Mr. Wiley. Upon the 
consummation of this union she gave up 
teaching and came to live on the farm, and 
here she has resided until the present time. 
She sympathized with her husband in his 
church work, and was a true companion to 
him in his holy calling. They lived happily 
together, loving and laboring, until he was 
accidentally killed by a horse on August 21, 
1891, at Claypool, since which melancholy 
event she has remained on the farm. He 
was a local minister of the Methodist Epis- 
copal church, and in 1873 was ordained 
local deacon by Bishop Merrill at Logans- 
port, Indiana. He made farming his busi- 
ness, but hlled appointments, and was an 
earnest and eloquent orator, filled with the 
zeal that belongs to those who see by faith. 
He married a great many couples, who 
came to him from man}- quarters. Al- 
though he had been reared a Democrat, he 
became a stanch Republican and was an 
active worker in his party. He left the 
Democracy in 1856 and voted for John C. 
Fremont for president, the first candidate 1 1 
the newly-formed Republican party. He 
was at all times a leader in public questions 
and a moulder of opinion, and his splendid 



300 



COMI'EXniUM OF BIOGRAl'HY 



character was everywhere recognized and 

appreciated. Hi- widow ry intelli- 

i lady and resides in her home 

Menti ne. ' mi her farm live James E. 

Gill and wife, relative-, renting the 

and occupying part of the house. She is 

known and has the highest respi 
everybody. Mr. Hill i- a nal Kosci- 

county, Indiana, born March 3, 1S74. 
of Jain. ; Martha Ann 1 I 

Gill. He was educated in the country schools 
and : jriculturist. lie wedded Miss 

tngalls, daughter of All ►ert and Louisa 
(Shipley I Gill, and they have t\\.. little 
Ethel and Jessie. Mrs. 'iill re- 
I education and (table 

and genial lady, being a most fitting com- 
panion f' 'i' Mr-. Wiley. 



HENRY I). RING. 



X.. people that go t" make up our cosmo- 
politan civilization have better habit- of life 
than those who came originally from the 
great German empire. The descendant 

distinguished for their 
thrift and honesty, and these two qualities 
in the inhabitant- of any country will in the 
end alone make that country great. When 
with these two qualities i- coupled the other 
qualit) of sound sense, which all the < icr- 
man descendants p ssess, there are afforded 
such qualities a- will enrich any land and 
ii at the t"p of the countries of the 
\ in the f elevated humanity. 

Of this excellent people came the SUbji 
this brief memoir, lie come- e that 

produced the famous "lion Chancellor." the 
greatest statesman, all things considered, 



that ever walked this He comes 

of a race that i- famous for it- original in- 
ns in the problem- of civilized life 
«the and lleckel. The 
Germanic und in many of the 

greatest men and women of this and former 

and the subject of this -ketch may 
well be proud of hi- de-cent from such a 
race. He wa- born in Germany June 4. 

and i- thus an old man. whose days 

on earth are drawing to a close. His par- 

tvere Henry and Caroline 1 Snyder ) 

who lived a; VValdeck, Germany. The 
parent- were both native- of that country 
f that bio, .(1. and passed their entire 
live- there. Henry 1>.. before he had at- 
tained his majority, concluded to cross the 
ocean and find a home in America. Ac- 
cordingly he boarded a sailii 2 and 
after many week- -pent in t' n the 
Atlantic was landed safe and sound at New 
York on July 3, 1846, having been out since 
May h>th. I! to learn the cabinet- 
maker- trade, bul stand that 
sort of work he started out and after walk- 
ing about one hundred miles in search of 
work he finally secured a job on the Penn- 
sylvania canal at eight dollars per month. 
After a time he left this work and went to 
Philadelphia and hired out for or,, 
one hundred and twenty dollars. At the 
conch thi- period he hired out for 
fifteen dollar- ]>er month and continued thus 
until the fall of 1N50. when he came vve-t 

ncinnati, where he worked in a 1 
factory tor -ix months at ten dollar- per 
month and board. It wa- near Tiffin, Ohio, 
that he first -aw Corn planted. He worked 
on a farm there f time, clearii i 

the trees and -tump- and tilling the 
In 1S54 he married Mi-s Catherine Hop- 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



301 



and at that time had only one hundred 
dollars saved up. After his marriage he 
worked for three or tour years at the cab- 
inetmaker's and carpenter's trades, first re- 
ceiving ten dollars and then fifteen dollars 
per month. In 1856 his wile died and he 
later married Miss Sarah Rinehold. By his 
first wife he had one child: Ezra, born June 
_■. 1856. By his second wife he had five 
children: Mary, Ella, William, Calvin and 
John, all of whom, excepting Alary, are liv- 
ing. On the 28th day of September. 1864, 
Mr. King enlisted in the Union army and 
saw service for nearly a year. He partici- 
pated m several important movements, and 
was engaged in the battle of Bentonville, 
North Carolina. When the war ended he 
returned to his family in Ohio, but in No- 
vember, [867, came to Indiana and bought 
the farm on which he now resides. It was 
then covered with heavy woods, which has 
been removed by Mr. King. His second 
wife having died, he married Mrs. Nancy 
SL ane in April. 1891. He belongs to the 
Lutheran church, while his wife is a Meth- 
odist. Me is a Democrat, hut takes little in- 
terest in politics. He makes his money 
mainly out of general farming. He is an 
industrious and honest man and has the re- 

1 of all who kni i\\ him. 



JAMES S. SMITH. M. D. 

This gallant ex-soldier and now eminent 
physician at Warsaw. Indiana, was born in 
Fulton county, ( Hiio, October 12, 1845. His 
father was the Rev. Joel K. Smith, a farmer 

calling, but likewise a minister in the 
Methodist Episcopal church, who was a na- 



tive ot Pennsylvania, being bom in Colum- 
bia county. April lS, 1810. His mother, 
who bore the maiden name of Hannah 
Adams, was also born in the same county 
and state, March 13, 1813. In 1859 the 
family came to Kosciusko county. Indiana, 
and settled six miles west of Warsaw on 
the Tippecanoe river, on the farm on which 
Dr. Smith passed his youthful years until 
his enlistment, and there the mother passed 
away at sixty-seven years of age. Rev. 
Joel R. Smith, the father, who had been a 
local preacher for over sixty years, survived 
his wife until he reached the patriarchal age 
of eighty-three, and is still well remembered 
by many of the old citizens of Kosciusko 
county. He had charge of the circuit, hut 
was more generally known as a local preach- 
er and as the assessor of his township, in 
which capacity he served several terms, be- 
ing in politics a stanch Republican. He lived 
in retirement for several years, but never 
lost his enthusiasm in his church work, al- 
though he was extremely liberal in his views 
of religions affairs. 

James S. Smith was hut fourteen years 
of age when he accompanied his parents to 
Kosciusko county, and here lived on the 
home farm until August 18, 1862, when he 
enlisted in Company K, Seventy-fourth In- 
diana Volunteer Infantry. Colonel Chapman 
commanding. Company K was from War- 
saw, had not yet been filled to its comple- 
ment when the regiment was sent to the 
front and the company was left to follow, 
when full, to Bowling Green, Kentucky. 
However, on arriving at Munfordsville, 
where Colonel Wilder was in charge of the 
post, the company, with others, was cap- 
tured by the Confederate general. Braxton 
Bragg, lint was a; once paroled and sent 



3°^ 



COMPENDIUM OF Bl< 'GR.U'IIY. 



Young Smith's seventeenth birthday 
• >ner i if war. 
He was exchanged, however, thirty days 
later and rejoined eminent near Nash- 

ville, Tennessee. 

Mr. Smith took part, as a private, in all 
the marches, skirmishes and ments 

in which his regiment had a share until he 
mustered out of the service. He fought 
at Stone River. Tennessee, was in the At- 
lanta campaign, went with Sherman on his 
march through ' to the sea, and 

marched all the way fn m Louisville, Ken- 
tucky, t" Washington, D. C, to take part in 
the grand review — a sight the paralli 
which has never been seen — and was mus- 
tered out June it. 1865. The hottest fights 
that Mr. Smith was in were at Jonesboro, 
gia, and in front of Atlanta, where the 
men wen ther as men could 

Me was wounded at Missionary Ridge 
by a buck shot going through his throat and 
just grazing the windpipe, but he never left 
hi- regiment, never was in hospital, ii"i" ever 
in an ambulance, but came out of the army 

iter man than when he entered it. lie 
was ii"t yet. however, twent; Id. 

Mr. Smith commenced the study of med- 
icine about this time with Dr. II. M. Cow- 
gill, an "Id and experienced physician at 
Warsaw. Dr. Smith began practice in 
ciation with Dr. Cowgill at Atwood, in his 
1 >hl neighborhood, and for ten years met 
with abundant success, and then entered the 
Physio-Medical College at Cincinnati, from 
which he was graduated with tin 

Dr. Smith moved t" Nappanee, Elk- 
hart county, in [875, and was the second 
lent of the town. He secured the estab- 
lishment of the pi Stofhce at that place and 



was appointed the first postmaster, ha-, 
already had fivi experience in this 

line while a resident of Atwi 
tor practiced medicine and served as ] 
master at Xappanee until 1879, when he 
came to Warsaw, where he has had a re- 
munerative cliei lebest citizens from 
that time until the present, and has won a 
reputation that i* unexcelled by any other 
physician and surgeon in the count) 
Kosciusko. Hi- practice in Warsaw 
now extended through a peril 
twenty-two years in this city alone. The 
Docti r inds very high in the esteem 
of hiN brother practitioners of the city and 
unty, the greater number of whom are al- 
most in daily consultation with him in or- 
der t" avail themselves of his advice and to 
gain lessons from his long experience. The 
Doctor is also a member of the National 
Physio-Medical Association, to which he 
contributed many valuable papers on the 
technicalities of the science of medicine and 
his clinical experience. He keep- in touch 
with all the advances made in medicine and 
surgery, subscribes to the better 1 
periodicals published in the interest of the 
profession, and i-. besides, well read in gen- 
eral literature a- well as the profound and 
ibstruse work.- on philosophy, history, 
etc.. with which his library is rcp!< 

The Docti r was first married, in 1866, 
to Miss Mary A. Lutes, of Kosciusko coun- 
ty, and two children were l»orn to this union. 
viz.: Clarence W., ••Smith, the printer," 
and Rosa, wife of E. \\\ Kinsey. a banker 
at Claypool, Kosciusko county. On Sep- 
tember i". [882, 1 >r. Smith married Miss 
Philena Duvall, of Claypool, but no chil- 
dren have come to ble>> this union. The 



:OMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAfllV. 



303 



Doctor and wife, however, have adopted a 
daughter, Goldie V., whom they took under 
their care when an infant and who is now a 
school girl thirteen years old. 

Dr. Smith is a member of Henry Chip- 
man Post, G. A. R., attended the national 
encampments of the order at Cincinnati 
and Chicago, and has several times attended 
the reunions of his old regiment, the Seven- 
ty-fourth Indiana Infantry. In politics the 
Doctor in his earlier manhood was a Repub- 
lican, but latterly has been inclined to advo- 
cate the doctrines of the Prohibition party. 
His religion is based upon the Bible as in- 
terpreted by the Church of God, which is 
in >t a definitely organized church body, but 
rather a local congregational society. This 
society strictly complies with all the ordi- 
nances of the New Testament, even to the 
washing of each other's feet. This congre- 
gation has its camping grounds on the 
shores of Yellow Creek lake, four miles 
south of Burket, commonly known as Cen- 
tral Camp Meeting of the Church of God, 
other meetings being at Moundsville, West 
Virginia 1 where are also the publishing 
association and the Bible house), and in 
California. The camp on Yellow Creek lake 
comprises about thirty acres and is the site 
of a large boarding-house owned by the con- 
gregation, which is the resort at certain 
seav.n. of the year of many ministers and 
adherent- of the Church of < lod. The regu- 
lar annual meetings are held from August 
15th to August 20th, and these Dr. Smith 
never fails to attend. The grounds are very 
enticing and lovely. On February 4. 1902, 
Dr. Smith was appointed coroner of Kos- 
ciusko count}, which position he at present 

tills. 



MARION M. LATIMER. 

Among those who have distinguished 
themselves in the active duties of life in this 
county is the subject of this memoir. He 
comes of a splendid family, one that has al- 
ways been strong for right living and in- 
dustrious habits, for education and moral- 
ity, and for all that contributes to the wel- 
fare of the commonwealth. Many years ago 
the grandfather of the subject crossed the 
ocean from England and settled in the Nut- 
meg state. There he resided for some time, 
but finally came to this county and here 
lived the remainder of his days. His si mi, 
Lyman L.. was reared on his father's farms, 
partly in Connecticut and partly in this state. 
Upon reaching manhood he met and mar- 
ried Miss Susan Hartman. At first he en- 
tered a store at Warsaw and served as a 
clerk for a number of years, but then came 
to Palestine and went into business for him- 
self, with a general stock of goods, and thus 
continued some years. He died December 

4. [862. His marriage had occurred June 

5, 1853. The llartmans were of German 
descent and originated in this* country in 
Pennsylvania, thence removed to Ohio, and 
from there came to the Hoosier state. To 
Lyman Latimer and wife the following chil- 
dren were born: Lemuel L., who wedded 
Mi-. Alice Bickle, and is now in the hard- 
ware business with his brother; Marion M., 
subject: Tillie, deceased: Norman N.. who 
married first Mollie Bybee, and, second, Una 
Baker and is a hardware merchant in Men- 
tone: Hannah became the wife of William 
Baker and resides in Harrison township; 
Sofia is unmarried and lives with her mother 
in Mentone. Lyman Lai inter was a man 






t 0MPEXD1UM 01 rRAPHY. 



of much f 

ami honorable At the time of his 

death he left itate, and also 

1 name which his children ari 
their credit, lie was a charter mem! 

, I. O. O I 
ed January 9, 1849. 
Marion M. Latimer was born in the vil- 
of Palestine, April 11. 1856, and was 
reared on his father's farm. He was well 
educated and concluded in follow farmi 

fe's 1 ccupation. He remained with his 
mother "ii the farm after her marriag 
Christian Sarber until he was twent; 

when mi January [3, 1881, he was 
united in marriage with Mi-- Ready B 
daughter of Washington Bybee and 
1.1 Mien Bybee. To this union two children 
were Urn: Lyndes Levi, bom June 16, 
iss_>, wedded Miss Nellie Lyi n. April 10. 
2, ami Minnie Mary, born November 
I I. INN;. Both children have been well edu- 
cated. Mr. Latimer has dune well since his 
marriage, and his wife has had not a little 
t> > i|n with his success, a- all good women 
will. At present he owns two hundred and 
fifty-one acres of excellent land and takes 
much interest in the rearing of graded cattle 
and hogs. He make- the most of his in- 
ie from his shipments of h'>.^-. He has 
always been active and full of business life 
and i< a line representative 1 f the Americ 
farmer and stock-raiser. 1 Repub- 

1 d in his pari 
but ' take an active part, it >r is he 

iny 
ithin the gift of the o unty. I \< 
a in. 

known and where 



1 \1'T. ANDREW GERI »\\ W( N 

The thriving cit) of Warsaw, K 

county. Indiana, has been the arena in \ 
many test ha- Keen had among the 

gladial the bar; and am se in- 

tellectual athletes Andrew Gerov Wood has 
invariably borne off the laurels in all 

n which he ha- engaged and now ' 

minent legal firm of W 1 & Bo 

of this city. He- 
Mr. Wood w nt officer throughout 
the late Civil war. 

Andrew < i. Wood was bom in Mai 
ville, Union county, Januan 

1835, ail'! 1 of 1 >r. Ira and Ma: : 

1 Haw ley) W 1. of win mi the former was 

in Til in Xew York and the latter near I 
ton, Ohio. Dr. Ira Wood came west when 
still a single young man. was marrii 
( )hio, and was called fn m earth at the 1 

I thirty-nine year-, leaving hi- « 
with five children. Mrs. Wood sustained 
herself and reared her children by keeping a 
-elect boarding house, many of hei 

E eminent citizens. In iN;.' Mr-, 
j^aret 1 llawlev 1 Wood was united in mar- 

for the second time, the fortunate man 
wh. 1 win her l n Fleck, of New ■ 

fornia, Ohio, where they re- i the 

death of Mr Fleck, which occurred in 
The then retunn 

Marysville, where -lie pass 
of her life, dying at the aj 
in 1882, in the first frame h< 
in Marysville, and which had bei 
by her first 1 1 ft. Ira \\ 

had reared three childrei 

v : John, a dealer in dru 
Mar) s\ tile : I :ontractor in the 

■it at M 



COMPE.XDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



305 



ville, at Bellefontaine, Ohio, and at Knox- 

ville, Tennessee. Through his mother, An- 
drew G. Wood is connected with the famous 
Rev. Hosea Bigelow, of the early Method- 
ist Episcopal church in Ohii ». 

Andrew G. Wood was a student at the 
Ohio Wesleyan University at the time of his 
mother's second marriage and was then 
seventeen years old. At eighteen he became 
a clerk in Milford Centre. Union county. 
and at twenty married Mi-^ Rose A. Reed. 
of the same town, and at once removed to 
Waterloo, Black Hawk county, Iowa, and 
engaged in general merchandising under the 
firm name of Elwell & Wood, their principal 
trade being with the Indians, the Sioux, who 
were clustered around Spirit Lake. He had 
invested two thousand one hundred dollars 
in this undertaking, and in two years added 
two thousand seven hundred dollars to his 
original capital. The inclemency of the 
weather, which was very rigor, .us during 
the winter season, caused his return to Ohio. 
In 1857 he re-engaged at Milford Centre in 
merchandising under the firm name of 
Wood & Red. investing all his capital, lint 
at the end of three years had lost it all. He 
next entered the law office of Cole & Law- 
rence, the leading attorneys-at-law in Marys- 
ville, diligently devoted himself to study, and 
was admitted to the bar in i860. 

At the eruption of the smoldering fires 
thai resulted in the Civil war. Mr. W 1 re- 
sponded to the first call for volunteers and 
enlisted in Company H, Thirteenth Ohio 
Infantry, for three-months service. The 
nent was assigned to the field in West 
Virginia under Col. Samuel l'iatt (brother 
of Don l'iatt). the regiment afterward be- 
ing under the command of ( Lionel I law kin-, 
and t 10k part in the battles of Phillippi, 



Carnifix Ferry and Greenbrier. For meri- 
torious conduct on the field, he was pro- 
moted to be second lieutenant of his com 
pany, and after other valiant service under 
Colonel Hawkins ami ( ieneral I'.uell was 
commissioned by Governor Morton as first 
lieutenant. He then raised Company H, 
One Hundred and Twenty-third Indiana In- 
fantry, at Greensburg, and with it saw ser- 
vice at Resaca and all through the Atlanta 
campaign', including Jonesboro, Kenesaw 
Mountain, and back to Franklin, Nashville, 
and thence to Wise's l'< rks and Kingston. 
Xorth Carolina, and a dozen other points, 
during the greater part of the time having 
command of his company. In the Atlanta 
campaign also he was an aide on the staff 
of Gen. John C. McQueston, and on that of 
General Strickland, and in Xorth Carolina 
was made judge advocate of courts martial 
at Salisbury from May until September, 
1865. Many grave charges were brought 
before him, including that of murder, and 
among other culprits one young lady was 
found guilty of manslaughter and fined 
one thousand dollars. 

Captain Wood was honorably dis- 
charged from the service in September, 
1865, and November n, [865, came to 
Warsaw, then the third town of any import- 
ance in northern Indiana', and here several 
of his wife's relatives had their abode. 1 fere 
he resumed the practice of the law. first on 
his sole account, next a- the head oi the 
firm of Wood & Brubaker Bros., and finally 
formed his .present co-partnership. In each 
case hi- partner had read law under him and 
had been. admitted to the bar from his office. 
Mr. Wood practices in all the courts, state 
and federal, and has met with a dazzling 
;ss that has placed him among the 



306 



WPENDIUM OF BIouR.iriiY 



eminent ' E the state- 

eat that it can hardly be enlarged upon 
in the limited space that can be spared in 

Mr. Wood has lo,ng been an active and 
popular member of the Democratic part) 
and lias at different times been it- nominee 
for responsible positions of a legal character, 
such as prosecuting attorney, judge of the 
district court, etc., but his party was always 
the weaker of the two dominant pari 
his district. He has served a- delegate to 
county, state, district and congressional con- 
ventions, and f<>r thirty years was chairman 
of the Democratic county committee and 
member of tin- state committee. In 
[866-7 he was editor of the Warsaw Union 
the Democratic organ of northern Indiana, 
and in this capacity wielded a powerful in- 
fluence in molding public opinion r>n many 
matters besides politics, lie has served two 
term- as member of the city council and was 
the first Democrat that ever had thi- h 
The marriage of Mr. and Mrs. A. G 
tl has been crowned by the birth of four 
children, namely: Trclla. wife of Abe Bru- 
liaker. cashier of the State Bank; Jennie. 
wife of O. I' le, an attorney at Ft. 

Wayne; Emma, wife of < >. 1 '. Baker, a com- 
ilesman residing in Warsaw, and 
Xettie. wife of < *tto Philpott, superintend- 
ent of the cemetery in the same city. 

ternally Mr. W 1 was initiated as 

tld Fellow at Marysville, < )hio, in 
became a charter member of Lake 
I Warsaw in 1K74; ha- passed all 

lairs, has represented the 'mate 

-rand lodge; ha- been financial 

. and 

ilso a member 

of Hackelman Encampment N ind a 



captain of I \ T o. 5, Uniform Rank, 

and has attended the national canton. Capt. 
W - a charter member of Henry 

-;. <i. A. R., in 1868, ha- served 
mmander and has attended two 
national encampments, one at Columbus, 
Ohio, and one at Chicago, Illinois, and is 
likewise a member of the Loyal Legion 
mmandery of Indiana. Capt. Wood was 
reared in the faith of the Presbyterian 
church, hut in maturer year- became an 
Episcopalian, while Mrs. W< od i- a devoted 
adherent of the Presbyterian faith. Mr-, 
is likewise a Daughter of Rebekah in 
the < >dd Fellows order and a member of the 
Woman's i uxiliarj to the 

Grand Army of the Republic. Socially Mr. 
and Mrs. Wen d -tand very high in the : 
circles 1 if Warsaw and it i- the delight of the 
Captain and his wife to entertain their nu- 
merous friend- at their elegant home, where 
a liberal hospitality and a gracious recep- 
tion are always extended I and 
where the Captain enjo\ r s t' the ntni 
game at die-- in his well-appointed library 
when he meet- an opponent worthy of his 



SAMUEL S. R( >BINS< IX. 

The family of which this well known 
citizen i> a worthy representative cami 
this countrj originally from Ireland, his fa- 
ther. William Robinson, having been l>orn 

tucky. The 
Miller family, of which the subject's n 

preseiltative, were \V' m Pennsyl- 
vania ami were of German de-cent. In 
Kentucky William Robinson and Nancy 
Miller met and were married, for the Mil- 




^0 AsvyV"*^ ■€/ Q\jr£~w* 'tr>^ 




^"L 



COMPEXDIL'M OF BIOGRAPHY 



307 



lers had moved to that state. This was 
about the beginning of the nineteenth cen- 
tury. To the marriage of this couple .the 
following children were born: Henry, 
William. Robert, John, Sarah, Anna, 
George. James, Samuel, Andrew, two that 
died in infancy, Eliza and Nancy. Will- 
iam Robinson was a large farmer and stock 
raiser. At one time, it is related, he brought 
home with him a slave girl to help his wife 
in her domestic duties, but the wife refused 
to have her help at all, as she was unalter- 
ably opposed to slavery. The result was 
that no slaves were owned by Mr. Robin- 
son. In fact, so great became his own ob- 
horrence of the institution of slavery that 
he sold "lit in Kentucky in 1829 and came 
to Indiana, locating in Tippecanoe county. 
He entered a tract of three hundred and 
twenty acres of woodland, and began the 
task of clearing the same. He lived there 
until [839, when he sold out and moved to 
Kosciusko county and settled 1 in what is 
now Seward township. The land is now- 
owned by J. P. and S. M. Robinson and 
Benjamin F. Day. They came from near 
Lafayette. Indiana, in wagons. At that 
time there were a few people living in and 
around Akron, and from that point the fam- 
ily were obliged 1 to cut their way through 
the woods to reach their farm. It was cov- 
ered with dense timber and wild animals 
were plentiful. In [838 the men had come 
here, bought the land, cleared a small patch, 
and erected a small log cabin: Here Will- 
iam and his wife lived until their respective 
deaths. They became prominent in the 
township and had the highest respect of all. 
They were member- of the Presbyterian 
church, as their respective families had been 
For several generations. William became 



prominent and was identified with the 
growth of this section of the state. He as- 
sisted in viewing the roads, building bridges 
and in handling the affairs of the early 
schools and the township. At his death he 
left a comfortable estate and a name which 
all people respected. 

Samuel S. Robinson was born in Frank- 
lin county, Kentucky, March 24, 1824. and 
was reared upon his father's farm in the 
woods. He received a limited education 
and was kept at work pretty steadily, clear- 
ing off the trees and stumps and tilling the 
soil. He was not permitted to get lones* >me 
for want of something to do, and remained 
with his father until he was twenty years 
old, when the latter gave him his time and 
hired him on the farm. About this time the 
subject married Mi>s Eliza A. Paxton, and 
by her had two sons and two daughters, 
viz : Harriet E., who became the wife of 
Isaac Lyons and lives in Kansas ; Wilson 
B.. wdio died in childhood; Olive M., who 
died in infancy; Millard F., who married 
Miss Xettie Gison and lives in Kansas. 
Upon the death of his first wife Mr. Rob- 
inson wedded Mary A. Graham and had by 
her live children: Anson E.. unmarried; 
Austin M.. married, lives in Texas; Alfred 
E. married Agnes Lucas and lives in Kan- 
sas; Eliza S., who became the wife of Sam- 
uel R. Sands and resides in Toledo. Ohio; 
Mary E., unmarried. Tli> second wifi 
ing, Mr. Robinson wedded Mrs. Ruhamah 
W. Brown, widow of Smith Brown and 
daughter of Henry and Betsey (Tappen) 
Clark. She was born February 2,^. [835, 
her parents being natives of New ^i 
She was brought west in 1843. and upon 

reaching womanh 1 married Mr. Brown. 

and to that wedding one child was born: 



3oS 



JPENDIUM <>1 : BIOGRAPHY. 



Owei .\n, who marriei Sands 

and I seward township. His second 

win 

\\ I • started 

for himself his father assisted him some- 
what in a material way. and to this he has 
I until hi lircumstances. In 

the spring of 1889 he moved fn m the farm 
in Seward township to Silver Lake and 
it ihc brick house where he now re- 
This he has improved until he 

ter hi> 
farm and taki isier than he did 

merly. lie and his excellent wife are now 
far advanced in life and in the natural course 
of e\ >-i i- must -■ >■ n pass away, but they w ill 
the satisfaction of knowing that the 
■ r for their having lived. Mr. 
Robinson has voted the Republican t i c k ■ t 
the party was first organized, voting 
for John C. Fremont and all of the 
sequent presidential candidates 1 f that party 
down to the present, lie is much inter- 
ested in politics and rejoices in tl 
of hi- part\. Since he was eighteen year- 
old he was a member of the Presbyterian 
church, but n< w he and wife are members 
of the Lutheran church, he being a d< 
it the Lutheran church of Silver Lake at 
lie is a high-minded Christian 
n. Mr. and Mrs. Robinson ha 
valuable 
ent deed 

Martin Van Bun f the 

vvn, 

id if Mrs. I 1. will 

liv the readers of this volume: 

the Rebellion broke oul in 

- 



untry. He was filled with patriotism 
ai d felt ; man. if 5 . should 

the union of the 
\t that time he resided on a forty- 
arm in DeKalb county, and though he 
wife and -"II. the latter <>nly :; 
weeks old, he determined to enlist This 
Ik did. and a- he kissed hi- wife good-bye 
1 either then thought that they would 

I [e entered the Fifth In.. 
Battery and marched away to the field of 
war. On April 1,;. 1862, he was laid 
under the sod in the sunny South, nevi 
return to his wife and litt'. I he -mall 

farm was partially cleared and was encum- 
bered, hut his widow went bravelj 
to free it and also improve it. The - 
in w ;: reputable citizen and the mother is 
the wife of Samuel S. Robinson. 

with her own hands in clearing 
burning the brush and tilling the 
-oil. Shi n< w owns one hundred and tweu- 
ty-fi ur acre- in Seward town-hip. the most 
of which was bought by her own ear 



Id )\\ \KD MO< >\\ 



Edward Moon, who is well remembered 
by the people of Kosciusk 1 count) as 

partner ii the late Hud— 1; Beck, 

his brother-in-law, came t< Warsaw ii 

where he lived the remainder 

of his life in the commodious home which 
irehased of his brotl 

after I of Warsaw he 

and 
1 in that 1 ']•' '" 

I 

:i |ohn Tri.-h in the mauufae- 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



309 



ture of wagons, the firm doing a large and 
profitable business and becoming widely 

known. 

Edward Moon was burn in Clarehill, 
(.."(unity Derry, Ireland, June jS, 1821. He 
was married to Miss Isabella Heanev. at 
Garvah, Ireland, April 23, 1844, and dur- 
ing the same year they came to America 
.m< I settled at Leesburg. Kosciusko county. 
F< >ur s< >ns were born to them, Daniel. 
George, John and William, all of whom are 
living except George, whose death, in 1893, 
was caused by an accident. After the death 
of his wife. September 8, 1853, Mr. Moon 
went to California for a few months'. He 
1 successful there, but returned that he 
might lie with his children 1 , who were being 
cared for by friends, and engaged in the 
drug business, for about twenty years, in 
Leesburg. He was married February 14, 
[860, to Miss Isabella Smith, and to them 
six sons and two daughters were born. 
Three of these children died in infancy, and 
Edward F. is also deceased; Leolin, Isabella 
and Charles are still living. On February 
10. [873, Mr. Moon was bereaved by the 
death of his second wife, and on March 25, 
1S74. he was united in marriage with Mrs. 
Victoria Beck Smith, a lady of rare refine- 
ment and culture, and who is a deservedly 
popular lady in the vicinity in which she 
resides. Her unassuming manner and 
charming personality brings to her pleas- 
ant home the society-loving and literary 
people of Warsaw and the surrounding 
community. 

Having become a great sufferer from 
rheumatism, in [886, Mr. M compa- 

nied by his wife made a trip to California, 

find relief. ( )nly a temp 
change in his health resulted 2nd later he 



visited other famous resorts in search of 
benefit, but with small success. He had be- 
come so great a sufferer and moved about 
with such discomfort that his business was 
placed in the hands of his son, Edward F. 
For years he was a patient sufferer and at 
last, on November 1, 1895, peacefully gave 
up his spirit. The funeral services were in 
charge of the Lake City Odd Fellows and. 
as a mark of respect, resi ilutii >ns were passed 
expressing the sympathy of the lodge for the 
bereaved family. 

Mr. Moon was a strong Republican, but 
a liberal minded man. believing every other 
man had a right to his own opinions. He 
held to the good old notion that a man is 
made for the office, and not vice versa. His 
religious training began early in youth, be- 
ing reared under the strict Presbyterian in- 
fluence, and he remained for many years a 
communicant of the church, but later in life 
united with the Christian church. He held 
high rank in the Masonic lodge, being a 
Knight Templar, and was a charter member 
of the Lake City lodge of Odd Fellows. 



JOHN RHODES. 

John Rhodes, an enterprising farmer 
and highly respected citizen of Monroe 
township, is a son of David and \nua 
Rhodes and dates his birth from \pnl 30, 
[857. The father, a nativ* isylvania, 

was taken when about eight years old to 
Seneca county. Ohio, at that time a new and 
comparatively undeveloped country, and 
there grew to maturity amid the strong in- 
fluences of the pioneer period. When 1 
young man he married a German girl by the 



3«o 



COMPEXDIL'M OF BIOGRAPHY. 



name of Anna Beigh, daughter of one of the 
early settlers, and immediately thereafter 
began housekeeping on a partially cleared 
farm wlierc lie live<l until failing health in- 
duced him to look around for a more favor- 
able location in which to raise his family. 
Learning that northern Indiana held out en- 
couraging inducement-, he dis] f his 
farm in Ohio and in January. 1840. came 
to Kosciusko county, settling in what was 
then Clay township, where he purchased 
forty acres of woodland which he at once 

i to improve. In due time lie cleared 
and had in cultivation a tine little farm upon 
which he lived and prospered for many 

, earning the reputation of a quiet and 
substantia] citizen whose name was always 

cted and whose word in any business 
transaction was a- good a- hi- bond. I It- 
reared a family of nine children, and de- 
parted tin- lii\. ,,n the 9th day of February, 
1899, after a continuous residence of nearly 
sixty years on the place where he originally 
1. 'eated; his wife preceded him to the other 
world, dying in the year 1SS4. The follow- 
ing are the names <>i the children horn to 
this excellent couple, viz.: Enoch, Mary. 
Delilah. Sarah A.. Meliuda. Harvey, Jcini- 
mah. Ann and John. 

n Rhodes first -aw the light of day 
in the home farm in Clay 1 now Lake) town- 
ship, and being the youngest of the family 
was >\empt from much of the hard work 
required to bring the placi tte of till- 

I le attended of win:' 
trict schools in the neighborhood and when 
enough busied himself with such labor 
as he could perform, growing up 
limb and with an indepi ><i spirit 

characteristic of the tl His 

brothers, reaching manh 1- e; 



_m life for thems< him the 

care of the farm and until his twenty-sixth 
year he remained under the parental 1 
looking after hi- father's inti 

Ah ut r883 Mr. Rl -an working 

by the month a- a farm laborer and < 
tinned in that capacity for a period of live 
year-, husbanding his earnings with scrupu- 
lous care with the object in vie 

I in agriculture upon hi- own res 
bility when a favoral rtunity pre- 

( >n the 17th day of February, 
iNNm. he was united in marriage to Miss 
Lenora Hoaglandt, daughter of J. R. 11 
land, one of the well-to-do farmer- of Mon- 
township, and shortly thereafter -et up 
a domestic establishment on the farm in 
Monroe township when since li 

lli- previous training and habits of indus- 
try eminently fitted him for the vocation 
which ' ti d for a life work and it was 

not long until he had earned the reputation 
of a careful and judicious farmer. bringing 
hi- place to a high state of cultivation and 
making a number of substantial impr< 
ments. lie now own-, one hundred and 
twenty acn I liable land, on which i- 

one of the finest private residences in the 
township, his home being comfortable in ail 
it- appointment- as well as attractive to the 
eve. In addition to genera! farming, Mr. 
Rhode- raises considerable live stock, in- 

sting the greater part of his income in this 
way atid seldom fai 
from hi- business transacti He 

very careful man. ice and 

rethought in what he undertakes and his 

und judgment enables him to prosecute 

ess ful issue anj enterprise to which 

he addresses himself. Taking an interest in 

politic.. nld. 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



3ii 



he is rather independent in the matter of 
voting, usually casting his ballot for the 
candidate hest qualified, though in the main 
supporting the principles of the Democratic 
party. 

Mir. Rhodes lias the name of being an 
honest and upright man of the strictest in- 
tegrity and right nobly has he earned the 
wholesome reputation which is his. Quiet 
and unassuming in demeanor, with an agree- 
able personality, he is widely and favorably 
known and belongs to that sturdy class of 
citizens who by actions rather than words 
exercise a beneficial influence upon society 
and form the basis of the community's prog- 
ress and prosperity. He is a firm believer in 
revealed religion and at the present time 
is inclining to the belief of the United 
Brethren church, with which he contem- 
plates soon placing his membership. In his 
good work he is ably assisted by his faith- 
ful wife, a most estimable lady of many 
virtues, known and respected throughout 
the neighborhood for her sterling character 
and zeal in the cause of religion and moral- 
ity. Mr. and Mrs. Rhodes have one child, a 
daughter, Xellie Rose, whose birth occurred 
on the 17th day of October, 1S97. 



GEORGE McCOXXELL. 

Agriculture has been the true source of 
man's dominion on earth ever since the pri- 
mal existence of labor and has been the 
pivotal industry that has controlled for the 
most part all the fields of action to which his 
intelligence and energy have been devoted. 
In a civilized community no calling is so 



certain of yielding a compensatory return as 
that which is culled from a kindly soil, al- 
beit the husbandman at times is sorelv taxed 
in coaxing from Mother Earth all that he 
desires or even expects; yet she is a kind 
mother and seldom chastens with disappoint- 
ment the child whose diligence and frugality 
she deems it but just should be rewarded. 
The subject of this sketch has found a bene- 
factress in Mother Earth, for he was early 
deprived of the mother that bore him, and a 
father he never knew, as he was a posthu- 
mous child. 

George McConnell, of Jackson town- 
ship, Kosciusko county, Indiana, is a native 
of Coshocton county, Ohio, and was horn 

September 26, 1829. He is a son of 

ami Mercy McConnell, and, as intimated in 
the foregoing paragraph, never saw his fa- 
ther, who in life was a farmer. There were 
twelve children in the family besides him- 
self, and of these the names of ten can be re- 
called, viz.: Lucinda and Marinda (twins), 
Margaret, Acie, Andy, Matthias, James. 
Daniel, Francis and Samuel. 

Young George McConnell filially aided 
bis mother in the home place until he was 
fourteen years old and then went to live 
with his brother Francis for two years; he 
next worked on the farm of another brother 
until he decided to take unto himself a wife. 
He carried out this happy decision January 
27, 1849. by leading to the marriage altar 
Miss Elizabeth Hunter, also a native of 
Coshocton county, Ohio, horn April 17. 
[830, an early playmate of our subject and 
a daughter of Thomas and Nancy (Hai 
desty) Hunter. The father. Thomas Hun- 
ter, was a native of Ireland, hut was a mere 
lad when brought to America by his parents. 



3'2 



tPENDIUM OF BIOGKM'IIY. 



w ho settled in < >hio. The m< 'titer was born, 
I and died in Coshocton county. She 
and her husband were the parents of eleven 
children, eight sons and three daughtei 
whom i"iir are living, as follows: Eliza- 
beth (Mr-. McConnell) ; Sarah, wifi 
John Mi 1 i Grant City, Missouri; 

Samuel, married, is a horticulturist and lives 
in Missouri; Pauline is the wife <>i" John 
McElwee, a farmer of Coshocton county, 
Ohi Mrs. McConnell received a 

common-school education and later became 
an ornament to the community in which she 
was reared t" womanho 

genial union of Mr. and Mrs. 
mnell have been lx>rn the following 
named children : I a irenzo I >., 
Harvey W., Patrick Henry, deceased, John 
!•'.. I 'auline, I- ' li m ed, < irant. de- 

ceased, William I>.. Lettie, Charles and 
Blanche. 

About three years after their marriage 
Mr. and Mrs. McConnell removed from 
Coshocton county, < )hio, to Whitley county, 
Indiana, where Mr. McConnell steadily 
1 to the front and soon purchased a 
farm of one hundred and thirteen acres, 
nearly nil of which was covered with a 
dense growth of timber. This land he cleared 
and improved and made of it one of the 
handsomest and most profitable t';irm- in the 
country. On this farm he lived from [852 
until September, 1882, when he came to 
iunty and bought a small place 
half a mile north of Sidney, on which lie -till 
lives and has as co*y a home as there is in 
Jackson township. He has, moreover, in- 
ish capital to about five thou- 
sand dollar- and all thi- property and capital 
result from his own labor and frugality, as- 



sisted by his willing and amicable wife, who 

c- much credit for the part she has 
taken in advancing the prosperity of the 
family. In January. 1899, Mr. and Mrs. 
nnell celebrated the golden annivers- 
ary of their wedding, upon that occasion re- 
ceiving many hearty congratulations front 
their numerous friends here and elsewhere. 

Mr. McConnell. since he became of 
has always taken an active interest in the 
affairs of the Republican party, with which 
he 1- very popular personally and has 
several times represented the Republican 
his township in their county conventions. 
He has. however, never sought a public 
office nor any other reward for his de\ 
to his party. Mr. and Mrs. McConnell are 
devout members of the Christian church, 
which they aid liberally by contributii 
its support fn m their means and the t< 

if which they implicitly follow. He 
stands very high in the esteem ^i his fellow- 
townsmen and neighbors, and most 
servedly so, inasmuch a- from a poor hoy he 
ha- raised himself to a p isition of considera- 
tion and influence, and in this esteem hi- he- 
loved wife and children have a full sh 

While a distinguished ancestry may 
amount to much and notable family con- 
ns have great influence in advancing 
a man'- career, the history of tin- country 
gives many instances of the prominem 
the present generation over the obscuril 
the preceding, ami when natural abilities 
and an unborn spirit of ]>• re added. 

success in life is almost sure to be the re- 
sult, .'.lid this fact has been exemplified in the 
career of ' McConnell. who, unaided 

by the pr< f a brilliant ancestral his- 

torv. at lea-t a- far as it is known in thi-. 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



3'3 



his native country, has made himself what 
lie is without any such extraneous advan- 
tage, great as it is in the life of him who 
is fortunate enough to possess it. 



JOHN PRISER. 

John Priser. a prominent farmer and 
stock-raiser of Monroe township, was born 
February 9, 1844. > n Montgomery county, 
where his ancestors had settled in an early 
day. His father, David Priser, moved to 
the above county and state when a small 
boy, and on reaching the years of manhood 
was married there to Mi-- Margaret War- 
ner, who became the mother of two sons and 
five daughters, namely : George. Mary. 
Nancy, Catherine. Susan, John and' Eliza- 
beth. 

David i'riser died when the subject of 
this sketch was five years old. after which 
event the mother sold the farm and came to 
Kosciusko county, Indiana, purchasing a 
farm in Jackson township where she died the 
year following her arrival. Of her seven 
small children all of whom were left to the 
care of friends and neighbors. John was 
taken by an uncle. Samuel Miller, whose 
house he made his home until that gentle- 
man died, which occurred when the lad was 
twelve years of age. From that time until 
his eighteenth year the boy lived with his 
older brother. George Priser. who looked 
after his interests and gave him the advan- 
tage- of a good common-school education. 
He grew up a strong, healthy youth and sev- 
eral years before reaching maturity could 
easilj do a man's work at any kind of labor 
on the farm. When the great Civil war 



broke out. young I'riser. animated by a gen- 
uine devotion to his country, tendered his 
service in behalf of its interests, enlisting in 
September. 1862, in Company M, Fifth In- 
diana Cavalry, which was mustered at Indi- 
anapolis and experienced its first active ser- 
vice while pursuing the Rebel General Mor- 
gan through various parts of Kentucky. 
Subsequently Mr. Priser took part in a num- 
ber of campaigns in Tennessee and Georgia, 
participating in some of the most noted bat- 
tles of the war. and at the expiration of bis 
period of enlistment, in 1865. was dis- 
charged, after giving three of hi- best vears 
to the service of his country. 

While in the army he husbanded his pay 
with the most scrupulous care and at the 
close of the struggle found himself the pos- 
sessor of quite a snug sum of money, which 
was judiciously loaned at a liberal interest. 
Returning home. Mr. Priser worked for 
some time at farm labor in this county and 
later was similarly employed for nearly nine 
years in various parts of Indiana, Ohio and 
Illinois. In September 1874, he took to 
himself a helpmeet in the person of Miss 
Amanda McPherson, daughter of Solomon 
McPherson, one of the pioneers of Monroe 
township, and the marriage was blessed with 
one child. Minnie, whose birth occurred on 
the 31st of May, 1883. Some time prior to 
his marriage Mr. Priser purchased the farm 
in Monroe township where be now lives, and 
it was on this place that he set up his first 
domestic establishment and began life a- a 
prosperous tiller of the soil. Since that time. 
by much labor and successful management, 
he has brought his farm to a high state of 
cultivation and made a number of valuable 
improvement-, among which are a line and 
commodious dwelling supplied with all the 



3«4 



PEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



'culate<l 
I 
barn an _ 
.1 with • -.he 

k for the ]>■ 

hich iiave w him 

83, the death 
ijel entered Mr. I 
therefrom the : 1 1 1 and in 

March; 1890, lie married h m- 

]»ai: a -id 

Hannah 1 Hickman 1 Ross, a unii n without 

ere ami 
the early settler- - ip, the 

fat: rman and the mother - tch- 

Iri-h de-cent. They came to the county 
when the country was an almost unbroken 
took an active part in 

n- 
ck- 
at that time were tr. 
par - 'hern Indiana in - 

_ tth- 
• _ -'ill 

living, ha\ 1 lie ripe 

ent 
■ >f ! . inty continui $48 

.it the present time makes her home with 
_ iter, the wife of < air subject. 

In all that constitutes true manh 1 and 

ship Mr. Priser is a 1 

ample and ni Jier than he in the 

•ii ami confidence of the community. 

lh- I by duty 

faithful]} nd by industry, thrift and 

• - he ha- acquired a lib- 

■ E 
;i"ii which 
b) tile '11- 



y act. He is g anient 

and pi news ami while keeping 

If well informed upon current events 

lively interest in all public af- 

vnship and county, has never 

had tiie fainu - quiet 

nted life <>n the cozy farm for the 

which usually come t>> 

in whi He has 

\\"rked hard for that which he 

■ and knows hi w t. > appreciate the true 
■ 

\'e\erthe- 
- lil>era] in his bene and 

stands ever ready to support with hi- inrlu- 
.nd means all me r the material 

and nigral welfan - community. In 

a art su| :' the Re- 

publican party and in relig with 

his wife, t" the dermaii Baptist church. 



CHARLES 1'.. BENTLEY. 

stmaster of War- 
saw. Indiana, is a native of Massachi 
and first saw the light of day in the cil 

n, August -'4. 1856. His father. 
Richard I'. Bentley, was born in 1 

.ml, and immigrated i" Amen. 
iting in Boston, where hi 
in the manufactun During the 

Civil war he wa- Idier and 

:i the Army of the Poto- 
mac. Ill - ken prisoner at Harper's 
Kerry and held until exchanged. He 
part in a number of hard-fought b 
skirn ^ which were the -1 

battle of Hull Run. Chancellorsville and 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



3i5 



Fredericksburg-. The subject's mother bore 
the name of Ann Mclnnis, was a native of 
Ireland and came to America during- her 
girlhoi >d. 

Charles B. Bentley was reared in the city 
of Boston and between the ages of twelve 
and fifteen served as a telegraph messenger 
and also clerked in a drug store in that 
city. He obtained his education by attend- 
ing the night schools, in which he was an 
apt pupil, having made rapid progress in his 
studies. At the age of fifteen he com- 
menced tit learn cigar making at Dover, 
Massachusetts, working there seven months, 
and then returned to Boston, where he 
served an apprenticeship of a year and a half 
at the trade. When about seventeen he 
went tn Westhehl. where he received regular 
wages and subsequently worked at various 
places as a journeyman, but mostly in Bos- 
ton until 1880, when he came to Warsaw, 
Indiana, and worked a year for other parties. 
In 1881 he established himself in the busi- 
ness of manufacturing cigars at Warsaw, 
which he continued for about twelve years 
with encouraging success. For some time 
thereafter he was engaged in the life insur- 
ance and book business and subsequently be- 
came foreman in the Foster cigar factory 
at this place. 

On the 1st day of October. [883, Air. 
Bentley was united in marriage at Warsaw 
to Miss Jeanette Jerman, daughter of 
Daniel and Rebecca (Findley) Jerman, of 
Mechanicsburg, Ohio, a union blessed with 
the birth of three children, viz: Philip J., 
Wilina F. and Anna C. all at home. 

Mr. Bentley was appointed postmaster 
of Warsaw in November, 1897, a,1 'l reap- 
pointed in January, [902. When he en- 



tered upon the duties of the position War- 
saw was a third-class office and through his 
energies it has been raised to the second 
class, with free city delivery service, which 
was established in December, 1900. Five 
rural delivery routes have also been estab- 
lished, with a sixth under headway which 
will doubtless be established during the sum- 
mer of 1902. Mr. Bentley has been instru- 
mental in bringing about these results and 
the credit is largely due to his energies and 
enterprising spirit. He is an uncompromis- 
ing Republican in politics and takes an active 
interest in his party's welfare. Fie was for 
eight years a member of the county central 
committee, served as president of the Young 
Men's Republican Club of Warsaw for two 
terms, and in 1896 was chosen district chair- 
man of the Lincoln League. He is an hon- 
ored member of Lake City Lodge Xo. 430, 
1. O. O. F., also a Knight of Pythias and 
an Elk. He was a member of the city coun- 
cil from 1891 to 1893, the duties of which 
position he discharged to the satisfaction of 
all and with credit to himself. 

Mr. Bentley is one of Kosciusko coun- 
ty's popular citizens and since becoming a 
resident of Warsaw has been a potent fac- 
tor in public affairs. While an active Re- 
publican, his social qualities are such that 
many of his warm personal friends are 
among those who hold views diametrically 
opposed to his own. He is respected by all 
classes and conditions of people and as an 
official is painstaking and obliging, his re- 
lations with the public being most pleasant 
and agreeable. He possesses a personality 
that wins him friends and all who know 
him speak in high terms of his many fine 
qualities and upright conduct. 



19 



3i6 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



FREDERICK McSHERRY, JR. 

There'is great difference in this world of 
ours as to how we get <>ur property, whether 
by small degrees and hard toil, or by sud- 
denly making it in one or a few lucky vent- 
ures, or by inheriting it fr.nn successful and 
thrifty ai One important fact will 

not be disputed: That if a man cam- it by 
hard knocks he is much more likely to re- 
tain it than if it had been left him by his 
hi- not and hard-working father. "Come 
ea^y. . " i- literally true, hut it i- not 

t.. the credit of any one that it i- so. People 
of all occupations should he thrifty ei 
t.. tai if what they have, no matter 

how they obtained it. fi r they have others to 
consider — children who have the right to de- 
mand of parents that they save the property 
left to them by ai Such is a family 

inheritance which no member has the right 
t.. squander and dissipate. Thrift should 
characterize the effort- of every one, 
does the subject of this -ketch. He knows 
how to take care of hi- property, a most 
valuable qualification. He was horn in Ohio 
on August 19, 1837, and is the son of | 
crick and Catherine (Work) McSherfy. 
Grandfather McSherry was a native of the 
Emerald Isle, a- was also his wife. They 
ed the .cean to America and firsl set- 
tled in Pennsylvania, hut later came on to 
Ohio. When the father of subject was a 
bo) he learned the miller*- trade in Pennsyl- 
vania and < )hi... and upon reaching maturity 
married Mi-- \\..rk. their marriage occur- 
in Pennsylvania. Upon comii 
■Ohii he follow i-d the trade of milling. In 
iS)m lie came to Kosciusko county and en- 
' one hundred and sixty acre- in the 
deep wood- on section (O, Seward town- 



ship, where Frederick, Jr.. r. w live-. He 
built a abin and placed his family 

therein and beg > ir the land of its 

heavy coat of timber. This section was very 
new at that time, there hem- 11- road- and 
wild animal- and Indian- were numerous. 
The latter often came to the house to trade 
with the members of the family. To Fred- 
erick McSherry. Sr., nine children were 
lvirn. their name- her e Will- 

iam. Andrew. James, Violet, [sabelle, Rob- 
ert, Louisa, Frank, and Frederick, sul 
'l"lie latter 1- the youngest of the family and 
only one living. He wa- reared in the wilds 
..f Seward township and at a very early 

earned to -win- the ax and the hoe. 
Hi- summers were spent in cl< ff the 

from the land and in planting and har- 
vesting rops among the stumps that 

1 the clearings. In the winter- he was 
given a respite from hard labor, hut w 
quired to take care of the stock while attcnd- 

at the . 'Id I. >g schoolhouse, 1 
with a roaring fireplace. Hi- education was 
limited, hut was sufficient to enable him to 
handle ordinary business. November '■. 
1859, he wa- united in marriage with Miss 
Elizabeth, daughter of George and Percella 
(Keester) VVilks. Her parents were from 
Pennsylvania, where they married and re- 
sided until their respective death-. Eliza- 
beth W ilk- came to this comity when she 
wa- eighteen Id and lived with her 

Uncle, 1-aac Harbman, until her marriage. 
She was horn July <i. iS^S To subject's 
maffiage these children were horn: Hiram 

C, horn AllgUSt IS. l86l, died April .-'. 
1*865: 1. iuisa, who died in infancy: William 
died in infancy: Frederick A., horn August 
_-s. 1S1.4. married M i. 'fucker 

and lives near the old home in Seward town- 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



317 



ship; Isaac Newton, born August 19, [876, 
died August 16, 1877. These parents rear- 
ed two children of their own. one James F. 
Scott, wild was started in life by Air. Mc- 
Sherry. Subject now ownes a total of four 
hundred and fifty-eight acres in Seward 
township, having bought out the other heirs 
of his father's estate. He raises a great deal 
of stuck and sells a car load of cattle annual- 
ly. Mis barn was built in 1871 and his 
line brick house in 1881. Air. Ale- 
Sherry is a Republican and is greatly inter- 
ested in politics and has represented his 
party in county conventions. He is one of 
the leading Republicans of this part of the 
inty and is highly respected. 



[OHN C. SMITH. 



This well known citizen is another of 
i'h- 1 Id soldiers who went out to fight their 
country's battles forty years ago. What a 
splendid sight it is at the present day to 
see a company of the.-e old soldiers go by 
"it Decoration day or on the Fourth of July, 
in their faded uniforms and with their tat- 
tered Hags flying. But they will soon be 
gone forever, and nothing will be left but a 
memory. That memory should be some- 
§ nn ire than a sound. Their deeds 
should lie perpetuated in song and story, in 
monument and perpetual commemoration. 
SO that future generations may draw in- 
spiration from their patriotism and gallan- 
try. John C. Smith was born in Union 
county. Pennsylvania, November 12. 1841. 
and is the S' in of Leonard and Mary ( Heisl | 
Smith. The Smith family of which sub- 
ject is a member came to Pennsylvania many 



years ago from Germany, as did also the 
Heist family. Grandfather Heist lived in 
the Keystone state, owned and conducted a 
small farm and followed the cooper's trade. 
Leonard Smith was reared upon a farm and 
received a moderate education. He mar- 
ried Miss Alary Heist and soon afterward 
removed to this count}- and bought, in [848, 
a tract of two hundred and twenty acres 
of Leonard Cutler, all of which was covered 
with heavy timber. There be lived and 
labored, clearing the farm of its trees and 
brush and leading a useful and honorable 
life. To his marriage these children were 
born: John C. Samuel. Daniel. Jackson, 
Albert, George, Susanna, Alargaret, Eliza- 
beth and Alary A., of whom six are still 
living. 

John C. Smith grew up on his father's 
farm and obtained a fair education. When 
Fort Sumter was fired on by the rebels in 
1861 he strongly favored crushing them at 
once. He did everything be could to en- 
courage enlistment and himself finally en- 
listed when the first hurrah was over in 
Company F. Seventy-fourth Indiana Infan- 
try, August 18. 1862. was mustered in at 
Fort Wayne and soon afterward was 
to the front. He participated in the fights 
around Chattanooga. — Mission Ridge, 
Lookout Mountain, Chickamauga for two 
bloody days, — and then in all the splendid 
movements of the Atlanta campaign, being 
in numerous battles and skirmishes and un- 
der fire for the greater part of one hundred 
and five days. Then he participated in the 
historic and famous march to the -ea. where 
he again fought in many skirmishes and 
participated in many raid- on the farmers' 
henroosts and potato bins; thence up 
through the Carolina- 1 , fighting in many hat- 



3i8 



COMPEXDICM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



pitched character t" 
small ami inconsequential nature, and finally 
marched t" Washington t'> lie reviewed by 
the President and the greal generals as they 
inarched down Pennsylvania avenue t" the 
"Yankee 1 > nd the "Star 

Spangled Banner." Then they were sent 
home t" their happy families t<> take up 
more the duties of peace. He served 
through the war without a wound, and 
draw- a pension of ten dollars. While he 

n the service of his country his father 

and after his return he rented tl" 
farm for a time. Later he went t" Mar- 
shall county, and farmed there for six 
mi land owned by his wife, and then re- 
turned and bought the "Id Smith homestead 
and here he has remained until the present 
time. When thus bought the "Id farm con- 
sisted of "tie hundred and eighty acre-, hut 
now Mr. Smith owns a total of three hun- 

and thirty acre-. 1 li- farm 
the best in this pan of the county. He has 
a tine brick house and a commodious barn 
and i< in very comfortable circumstances. 
In I Si .7 he wedded Mi-- Silence, daughter 
of Jacob and Eliza (Turner) Raber. She 
wa- lxirn in Marshall county October 17. 
and i- now the only living child of her 
parents. Two of her brothers were in the 
Seventy-fourth Regiment Indiana Infantry. 
one of whom died in the government hos- 

..t Nashville and the other wa.- br 
hack t" his home only t" die as the result 
of his hardships in the service of hi- coun- 
try. To Mr. and Mr-. Smith nine children 
were ■ fi illow - : ( leanlhu- M.. l»>rn 

October i-\ 1868, wedded Mi-- Rebecca 
Martin ami live- in Franklin township; 
William t >.. born August 4. 1870, married 
Mi-- Emma [efferies and resides in Mar- 



shall county; < '-car 1 ).. born Novemb* 
1872, died in 1S74: Rosella, born Ma 
1876, died August 3 Alpheus R., 

born March 30, 1879, wedded Miss Mirtie 
Brown; Bertha A., born May 20, 1882, mar- 
ried Mace Sarber; < >ra A., born September 

'i. 1884. The family i- one of the most 
prominent in the county and Mr. and Mrs. 
Smith are people of the highest character. 
He 1- a member of William Raber Pi 
A. R., at Mentone, the post being nana 
a brother of Mr-. Smith'- who gave hi- life 
t" hi- country. Mr. Smith is a stanch Re- 
publican and has the respect of a large circle 
of acquaintances, while his splendid military 
record is the pride of hi- descendants and 
In- neighbors. 



ANDREW J. SMITH. 

This well-known citizen and farmer is 
a descendant of the "Id settler. Leonard 
Smith, an account of whose life will he 
found elsewhere in this volume. They were 
among the lir-t settler- t" come to the wilds 
of northern Indiana and undertake tin 
of clearing a farm and a home from the 

dense « Is. When the family arrived here 

the clearings were few and far between, and 
the large family of boys and girls were re- 
quired t" stir them-< r off the 
heavy timber and brush wood that cumbered 
il ami kept out the sunlight. Andrew 
J. Smith wa- born April 14. 1850, and in 
youth had hi- -hare of work. The long 
summer- were s|k.mu raising the crop among 
tumps and the winters in ■_ 
! t" the famous "Id pioneei 
And a- tiie years passed away, steadily, t""t 
tnd was cleared of it- timber 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



319 



;ui(l the wild animals were driven off or 
killed. Much more concerning' the parents 
may be found in the sketches of John C. 
and George W. Smith, brothers of the sub- 
ject, seen elsewhere in this book. Andrew 
was reared on his father's farm and chose 
that occupation when he reached years of 
discretion. He knew what was necessary 
on the farm and felt himself competent to 
do the duty required of a first-class farmer. 
He received a fair education, hut was not 
much interested in his books, and would 
much prefer to chase the rabbits through the 
neighboring thickets than pore over some 
old schoolbook in a hot ami stuffy school- 
room under the eye of some domineering 
and inflexible master. And he received about 
as much culture as the average boy of his 
day, as it was. and had much more sport 
than many of the others. The result was 
to give him an iron constitution and a love 
for the duties of the farm. He remained 
upon his father's farm until he had attained 
the age of twenty-one years-, and was then 
united in matrimony with Miss Malinda C, 
daughter of Daniel and Nancy ( Yander- 
mark) Hipsher, the marriage occurring Oc- 
tober 1. 1 87 1. She was born February 25, 
[851. Her grandfather, Daniel Hipsher, 
was a native of Holland, where he grew "up 
and was married. Soon afterward, with his 
bride, be crossed the ocean and found a 
home in the wilds of Ohio, that being .1 
very early day in the settlement of that state. 
Her father was burn in the Buckeye State 
and was reared there, but came in early 

tnanh 1 t" this county and settled on a 

farm near Palestine, where he worked at bis 
trade of blacksmithing. lie passed away in 
1871 and his widow in [876. To the mar- 
riage ^'i subject and wife the following chil- 



dren were born : Mary A., born February 
_'. 1872, who received a good education and 
became the wife of David Ingle, resides in 
Harrison township: LaVergne, born Decem- 
ber 19, 1873, is living in Illinois and en- 
gaged in farming; Frederick, born .May 16, 
1876, died December 12, 1879; Clement, 
born December 31. [878, married Miss Effa 
Sanders and lives in Chase county. Kansas; 
Ethel V., born May 20. 1890. Mr. Smith 
is engaged in farming ami stock raising, 
making a good income by raising stock 
horses and hogs. He is a Republican and 
is a broad-minded and liberal man. He has 
much influence in the township, has repre- 
sented his neighbors in the county conven- 
tions of his party, and served as supervisor 
of the township for twelve years, declining 
further re-election. He is thoroughly hon- 
est and has the unbounded confidence of all 
who know him. 



DAVID H. LESSIG. 

The Lake City Bank of Warsaw was or- 
ganized as a state bank, with sixty thousand 
dollars capital and with James McMurray, 
now retired and living in Indianapolis, as 
the first president. He was succeeded by 
Hudson Beck, who continued as president 
until his death in [884. W. B. Funk, who 
still resides in Warsaw and who was ex- 
treasurer, fi db wed Mr. Beck, he in turn be- 
ing succeeded by David II. Lessig, Novem- 
bei 'i, 1898. the present incumbent of that 
office. The first cashier was John 11. Lewis, 
who was succeeded by Albion Beck, son of 
Hudson Beck, about the time his father be- 
came president of the bank, and remained 



3^o 



UPENDIUM OF BlOGRAl'llY. 



until after his father's death. Samuel Bit- 
uIim had come into the hank a- book- 
kte; elected cashier i 

•i that place at this 
writing. The board of directors have b< 
chosen from the careful and conservative 
business men of the community. They 
J. VY. Curtis, a jeweler, J. M. Bash, M. 1).. 
W. I). Wi od, ex-ci unty clerk, A. I. Thom- 
i fanner. ( >scar Harding, a farmer. John 
■iier. a hardware merchant, and D. II. 
Les dent of the bank. Tl 

tween twenty-fivi thirty stockholder 

all local met ■ building was < in 

[870 and the hank is provided with a Hall 
f the hank show sixty thou- 
fr< in one hun- 
dred and thirty thousand to die hundred and 
fortj thousand dollars, with a surplus 
fifteen thousand dollars, dividends of from 
to eight per cent, are paid semi- 
ually, the stock being held at six per cent. 
to ten per cent, premium. At the expii 
tion of the old charter, in 1895, the hank 
was rporated under the name of the 

Lake 1 'ity Bank. 

id II. I irn near < loshen, 

hart county, Indiana. September 4. 1N51. 
1 lis parents, I abeth 1 [art 

Lessig, were both native- of Pennsylvania. 
They were married in Ohio, coming to 1 11- 
diai by 

he 
n building up 
trade. Although In 
• 

from [856 to the time 
tember 4. [868. His sur- 

vived him nearly thirty years, her death 
curring in February, 1 1 
Her 



with her two surviving child- 
net. I Mrs. \V. R, 

en, and D 
C, tin e of the 

calls to war and. although onlj 
joined the first tny formed 

usko county. After the three-months 
ice he re-enlisted for one year and the 
three yeai vice her g 

General Williams. After the f the 

5ted in I until his 

fathei his m\n death g two 

at the age of thirty. 

I >avid spent his lw.yh 1 da 

een attending 
his fathei After the 1 his 

father he lefl and one year later he 

under ( ieneral William-, 
who was then clerk of the county. I' 
mained in that office two and a h 
I kirii . years he was 

able training in the sch< 
IK- was next employed by railn 
Stanley at Lei n the 

grain 

able < d business. He remained 

in thi - and th< 

a nev I Leesburg, continuing in this 

busini pt for a brief interval, until 

he \\ unty auditor, in 1894. It 

is in'' this man 

1 le retail ffice of audil 

havii s 

i's father had been act: 
and the son became imbued with R< 
princi rly in life. He 

trustee for Plain township fi 

jter at Leesburg I 
during Ham- n's adminis 

■ 



COMPEXPIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



321 



is still active in political work. He gave his 
personaJ attention to the routine duties of 
his office as auditor and was the first auditor 
of Kosciusko county elected under the new- 
law. That lie proved faithful in public trust 
is shown 1>\ his being called to the presi- 
dency of the Lake City Bank immediately 
upon the expiration of his term as auditor, 
without solicitation on his part, as he was 
preparing to return to Leesburg, where he 
had business interests. Since assuming the 
presidency he has devoted his entire time 
and energies to the direction of the hank, 
which, due to his careful management and 
his knowledge 1 f the business interests of 
the count}, continues to lie a substantia] in- 
stitution. 

Mr. Lessig is of delicate constitution, 
having been threatened with hereditary con- 
sumption, of which his brother died. He is 
a lover of out-of-door life and especially en- 
joys camping out near Tippecanoe lake. 

At the age of twenty-four years Mr. 
Lessig- u as married to Miss Fanny S. Rich- 
ards! 11. of Rochester, New York, who died 
one year later and was buried on the first 
anniversar) of her marriage. She left a 
daughter. Fanny E., who is now the wife 
of Earl VV. Conrad, of Warsaw. After nine 
year- Mr. Lessig was again married, this 
time to Mary Eugine Killbury, of Hornells- 
ville. Xew York, whom he met while -he 
was visiting relatives in this county. Four 
children were 1" rn to them. Harriet Louise, 

ph S., I). maid Killbury and Eleanor 
Horton. Mr-. Lessig is devoted to her fam- 
ily and i- a capable wiir and mother. She 
i- a member of the Presbyterian church. 
Mr. Lessig i- a member of the Ma 

■■ No. [81, at Leesburg, in which he 
served as worshipful master for s< 



years and was for some time an active lodge 
worker. He is also a member of the chap- 
ter at Warsaw. 



JAMES WILLIAM LIGHTFOOT. 

It is not often that gentlemen who fol- 
low the vocation of farming turn their foot- 
steps to the east, coming from a state noted 
fur its congenial climate and productive 
and where land is supposed to he plentiful 
and easily obtained. Yet such was the case 
with those who controlled the early years 
oi our subject; it might he said, however, 
that it was foreordained by that mysterious 
providence which leads without our knowl- 
edge. 

James William Lightfoot i- a nativi 
the great state of Missouri and was born 
March 2. 1845. His early life was there 
spent until the death of his parents, which 
occurred in 1852, when he was a lad of hut 
seven years. After the said bereavement 
the elder children determined to make a 
home in Indiana and that year came to 
Kosciusko county. It was here that young 
James Lightfoot was reared, receiving his 
instruction in the common schools of the 
district during the winter seasons, and when 
old enough assisted in the labor incident to 
the life of a farmer boy. That he was an 
apt pupil in both school ami farm is evi- 
denced by his present pleasant home and 
surroundings, and the prosperity which at- 
tend- him in these later years of life can be 
attributed to that inherent energy and de- 
termination which wins success, even r 
adverse circumstances. 

On August jo. [875, Mr. Lightfoot was 



UPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



married to Mi-- Hul tbeth Stii 

born March 30, [851, in this county, a 
daughter of Jacob and Sarah (Wilson) 
Stinson. Ilcr father, Jacob Stins 
ceased), was one of the early pioneei 
Indiana and a large land holder in K 
u-k" county. Mr. and Mr-. Lightfoot are 
the parents of six children, namely: Garrett 
B., who married Nora Menzie, is a farmer 
of this count} : Lester H. is at home with 
his parents; Leqn J. died at the aye of fif- 
teen; Mary 1... John S. and G \. arc- 
all at In. me. 

Mr. ami Mr-. Lightfoot attend the 
Methi disl Episcopal church, and are held in 
much esteem b) their numerous friend- \"Y 
their excellent qualities. Mr. Lightf 
a Republican in politics, but | time 

litical mattei> beyond a proper ex< 
.of his right of franchise. He is an excel- 
lent, quiet citizen, and enjoys the respect 
and confidence of hi- neighbors and friends, 
wh. 1 have known him from early D03 



J( ISEPH SMALLEY. 

The family represented by the subject of 
this memoir moved t" this state when the 
country was a wilderness, tilled with wild 
animal- and with Indian- about as wild and 
dangerous as the animals. They were pio- 
of the typical class, and went into the 

w 1- with Christian fortitude t<> carve 

from the wild- h.. nies of comfort and refine- 
ment. They located in Noble county. Indi- 
ana, in [836, when there were not a 
families within a- many mile- 1 Her fre- 
quented the 1 made and 



their crop- \w-av~ were often encounl 
in the cornfield in r< ear time, ami 

the domestic animals had to he looked after 
sharply or they fell a pre)' to the wolves and 
They were required t" cut their 
homes from the di -t- which co 

the land, and not a crop could lie : 
until the timber had been burned and the 
sunlight had been let in to drink up the 
surplus moisture of the soil. The subject 

■orn in Fayette county, Ohio, and is 
the child of David and Margaret (Shobe) 
Smalley. David was reared on his father's 
farm in that county, and was taught to know 
what hard work meant at almost the com- 
mencement of his life. He wa- given such 
education as tin. subscription schools of his 
day afforded, and upon reaching manhood 
married Mi-- Margaret Shobe. To this 
union were horn four children, a- follow--. 

-a. horn in 1S40. who is unmarried 
and lives with her brother in Noble county; 

1. subject; Jacob, unmarried, who re- 
side- in Noble county and is engaged in 
farming and stuck raising; one that died in 
infancy. David Smalley'- father moved his 
family from Fayette county. Ohio, to Noble 
county. Indiana, in 1836, and there they en- 
tered a large tract of wild land, all covered 
with heavy timber. Later the father gave 
each of hi- children eighty acre- if this 
farm, and they settled on the same and be- 
gan to clear away the dense brush and tim- 
ber. It i- claimed that at that time there 
li viiii,' in what is now 
Noble county. At any rate thi- -how- how 

new the countrj nd with what 

td t" contend. The mills were 

- ■•] mile- away and the pplies 

e without. A little 

- if I >a\ id caught the 




JOSEPH SMALLEY FAMILY GROUP 



COMPF.XPirM OF BIOGRAPHY 



32; 



gold fever and joined a troop of men and 
crossed the plains to California, llis experi- 
ences for many years were the talk of his 
family and friends and would themselves 
make an interesting volume. David lived 
and died in Noble county, and was one of 
its foremost citizens and old settlers. His 
life was tilled with exciting events connected 
with the early times. David grew to man- 
hood in Noble county, and received his ed- 
ucation at the pioneer schools, attending the 
old log house, with its slab seats and clap- 
hoard roof, its stone chimney and its pun- 
cheon floor and greased windows. His son, 
the subject of this memoir, was given better 
opportunities, as he came at a later day when 
the pioneer days were drawing i< > a close. 
He was reared on the farm and upon at- 
taining manhood met and married Miss 
Mary Bybee, November 17, 187 1. To this 
union were born six children, as follows: 
Harry, born September 14, 1873, who is 
unmarried and resides at home; Gertrude, 
born Februarv 25, 1878, is unmarried and 
lives with her father; Lucinda, born Sep- 
tember 25, 188 1, is unmarried and lives with 
her parents; Delia, horn June 22, 1875. died 
February 4, 1890; two others died un- 
named. 

After marriage the subject lived in 
Noble count}' for thirteen years, and then 
moved with his family to Seward township. 
this county, and here they have since re- 
mained. Mr. Smalley is a strict Republican. 
has served his township as delegate in the 
county conventions, and is regarded as a 
citizen of high character and irreproachable 
life. Mrs. Smalley is a member of the 
United Brethren church and both are uni- 
versally respected. 



GEORGE W. SMITH. 

This well-known citizen comes from one 
of the oldest families in this portion of the 
state. They settled in this county when the 
land was covered with heavy timber and- 
when scarcely a clearing had been made in 
the vast expanse of wooded soil. The fam- 
ily is of German descent. The great-grand- 
father came from the Fatherland to Amer- 
ica before the Revolution and settled in the 
Keystone state when he was still a single 
man. Leonard Smith, Sr., was one of his 
si ms. The latter was reared a farmer and 
upon attaining man's estate married Miss 
Brifogle, and to them were born Leonard, 
Jr., John. Peter. Jacob. Margaret, Elizabeth 
and Maria. Leonard. Jr., distinguished 
himself in his opposition to slavery. He 
was an eloquent speaker and on all occasions 
made war upon the institution of slavery. 
He did not hesitate to disobey the infamous 
fugitive slave law, which required northern 
men to assist in capturing runaway slaves 
and return them to their masters. Instead 
of doing this, he did as many of the great- 
est men of that time did — assisted them in 
their efforts to escape their cruel masters. 
He was connected with the famous "un- 
derground railroad," which was formed in 
secret to help the slaves escape, lie mar- 
ried Miss Mary Heise and came to this 
county in 1848 or [849, settling on the farm 
where John C. Smith 1 , brother of subject, 
now resides. After a long and eventful lite 
he passed away in 1865. His widow sur- 
vived until October [6, [892, when she. too, 
crossed the silent river. 

George W. Smith, the son of Leonard 
and Mary Smith, was bom in Franklin 






tPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



township, tlii- county, Februarj .;. 1856, 

and was reared "it his father's farm, re- 

ceivii j ! a fair education and 

! the busii farming in all its 

detail^. He finished his schooling in the 

grades and in the normal schoi Is at Warsaw 

and was far enough advanced to teach in 

Is, which lie did 

- with e I le held one 

of the ded certificates of that day. 

He tl t first that he might perma- 

t'.entl 1' teachii 

well was he 
Inn finally he determined t" leave the 

in !<>r the farm, and a< 
ught the land where he now res 
"lie hundred and twenty acres, the 111 
which 1 with dense woods. Pre- 

in the farm he was. Au- 
gust 2$, 1884, united in marriage with Mi" 

- mnel and 

J. 1 Warren ) Jones. She was born 

June IO, 1865. Her lather served in the 

Union army during the Rebellion, and long 

after the war. in December, [896, he was 

killed by a train at Burket. < >ne child was 

born t" Mr. and Mrs. Smith. Cora, born 

August 15. 1885, and died September [3, 

Mr. Smith has a fine farm, well 

ed and cultivated, lie is a Republican 

ami is much interested in the success of hi- 

party in county, state and nation. He has 

hairman of the 1 
ship committee, and - 

In [884 he \ 
tnklin township by a 111.!' f thir- 

tlie i' w nship bei 
1 >em n ing the hiu 

in which he was held. It she mid be borne 
in mind that I of trustee i> th< 

\ nship 



he havii the affairs 

of the township. Upon his r< Mr. 

Smith received an increased majority, an in- 
dication of the satisfacti< n felt bj 
stituents. When he assumed the office the 
township was heavily in debt, but at the 
conclusion of his service the ind< 
had been, wiped «.nt and a neat sum v, 

rj He made the effort t" and did 

die standard hing in the town- 

ship. He and his wife are members of the 
United Brethren church in Seward town- 
ship. They stand high in the community 
and have the unbounded resp< who 

the plea their friendship. 



GEORGE I). ROSE. 

This gentleman is another 
soldiers whom it is a deUght t" h 
They are getting fewer and fewer in num- 
ber and their inarch i- quick and full 
of meaning ami tire as it was nearly forty 
: l>nt it thrills .me t" sec them in 
their old uniforms, with their tatti 
flying and their forms benl as they ; 

1 heir canes at the r< 
Memorial day or the Fourth of July. And 
interestii . them tell the 

of the dreadful hardships they endured 
in the hospital: 

(r in the battles "r skirmishes, or in the 
5 tuthern 1 racy. 

But their tinu I now . so all p< 

should join in honoring them for the 
- they made when they were j 

1 life, hut which we: 
■1 the altar of their country, 
eje I > k se, Jr.. was bom a - L uisville, 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



325 



Stark county, Ohio. September 14, 1836, 
and is the son of George 1>.. Sr., and Cath- 
erine iZerl)\ i Rose. The Rose family is of 
Germanic descent, the grandfather emigrat- 
ing from his native land to America in 
1793, when he was a lad of two years. The 
family first located in Maryland and there 
the grandfather grew up and learned the 
jeweler'- trade, his residence and shop be- 
ing in Georgetown. He lived there until 
the day of his death. The father of the 
subject was reared in Maryland and when 
a young man was put out to learn the shoe- 
maker's trade. It was thought proper then 
that all boys should know some trade. After 
he Ikui served his apprenticeship he opened 
a shop of his own in Fredericksburg, Alary- 
land, and remained there several years. 
While at Reading, Pennsylvania, he met 
Mi-- Catherine Zerby and soon afterward, 
in 181 7, they were married. To this mar- 
riage fourteen children were born, five sons 
and nine daughters : Elizabeth, who be- 
came the wife of Solomon Cliugerman, and 
after his death married Thomas Tegarder, 
who died in April, 1902; she is still living 
and reside- in Wisconsin: Susanna, who be- 
came the wife of Henry Horner and is de- 
ceased: Henrietta, who wedded Charles 
Rockhill and is deceased: Jacob, who died 
when young; Catherine, who became the 
wife nf Richard Hatfield and resides in 
Cedar Rapids, Nebraska; Josiah, who mar- 
ried Mary A. Flowers, was a soldier in the 
Union army during the Rebellion, a private 
in Company K. Twenty-eighth [owa Vol- 
unteer Infantry: he i- deceased and his 
widow lives in Kansas; Mary A., born Au- 
gust 8, 1829, wa- married in 1845 to Will- 
iam R. Hatfield, now deceased, ami she lives 
in Claypool, this county; Margaret, who he- 



came the wife of John McCone and is de- 
ceased; Lucinda, who wedded Aaron Flow- 
ers and lives in Oklahoma; George D., Jr.; 
John H., who died at the age of fifteen 
years; Edward, who died aged eighteen 
years; Sarah, who married Farris Whitwer, 
a soldier in the Union army during the Re- 
bellion; Rebecca, who became the wife of 
William YanHorn and lives in Clearwater, 
Nebraska. The father of the subject be- 
came a prominent man in Stark county, 
Ohio, whither he moved at an early day. 
He was an active Whig, and as such was 
elected sheriff of that count)-. He was an 
auctioneer 1 f considerable prominence. He 
became a member of the Baptist church, and 
'- a man of liberal habits ami of much 
intelligence. In April, 1X40. he came with 
his family to Laporte county, Indiana, and 
five years later removed to Clay township, 
this count}-, and there followed his trade of 
journeyman shoemaker. He and his wife 
were worthy people. She died in 1 S74. at 
the age of seventy-four years, while he re- 
mained until 1880. when he, too, passed 
away at the age of eighty-five year-. 

George D. Rose passed through the 
usual experience- of boys of the early days. 
He received a meager education, learning 
to read and write after he became a man. 
On the 27th of September. 1861, he en- 
listed in Company E, Fourteenth low a In- 
fantry, and after a season in the camp of 
instruction was sent to the scene of conflict 
down the Mississippi river. His first 
ice was at Fort Henry ami after it- capture 
he participated in the battle ^\ Fort Donel- 
-011. being engaged for four days. He 
1 with the army of General Grant up 
the Tennessee river and encamped near 
Pittsburg Landing. Here on the 6th and 



326 



COMI'EMVCU OF BIOGRAPHY. 



—tli of April, [862, he fought in the 
Derate battle of Shiloh. Late in the day he 
was captured by the enemy, but Mr. Rose, 
together with a squad of others, gave them 

>ail" and skedaddled hack to General 
Sherman's corps. After this what was left 
of the regiment was placed in the l"ni"n 
Brigade. He took part in the siege of 
Corinth and in the battle of that name, and 
there, "ii October 3, 1862, lie was shot 
through the right shoulder and laid three 
days in the mud and rain before he was 
picked u|». He remained in the hospital for 

months and was then discharged from 
the service; he has never fully recovered 
fn«m the effects of his wound and the ex- 
posure. 

Previous to the war. while in Jasper 
county, Iowa. Mr. Rose married Miss 
Anderson, the ceremony taking place De- 
cember .}. 1858. She bore him three chil- 
dren, one girl and two boys: Emma R., 
who became the wife of I 1 and 

lives in Trail, Oklahoma; Elmer E., unmar- 
ried, was a soldier in the Philippines as a 
member of Company II. Twenty-third 
United States Infantry: Thomas S. died 
when four years old. Mr. Rose lost his 
wife by death February 11. 1*74. Owing 
is splendid war record, Mr. Rose was 

■] door-keepi of repre- 

sentatives for the sixteenth and seventeenth 
ra] assemblies of [owa, and was made 

int-at-arms of the hi -lie eight- 

eenth general assembly. Succeeding this he 
was appointed guard ^\ the state pris 
Fort Madison for a term of four year-, hut 
only served two years and two months, 
when he resigned, lie served a- deputy 
sheriff of this county for live years. IK- is 
a member of the Grand Army of the Repub- 



lic and of the Knights of Pythias. He i- 
an anient Republican, and one of the most 

prominent men in this portion of the 



PETER SYLVESTER C< K IK. 

Peter Sylvester Cook, a native of Har- 
township, Kosciusko county, Indiana, 
was born November jo, [846, ami i- a son 
of John YV. and Ann (Pittenger) < 
His early education was obtained in t! 1 
subscription anil free schools of his town- 
ship and the high schools of Warsaw. Not 
being satisfied with the knowledge already 
obtained, he later entered DePauw Univer- 
sity, at Greencastle, Indiana, and later the 
Dunkard University •■{ Warsaw, where he 
took a special course in mathematics and 
later a higher course in a university in ( >hio. 
He was al-o educated in voice culture. In 
the meantime he had taught four terms in 
the district s,-' his native county and 

as an educator gained considerable distinc- 
tion, being asked many time- to continue in 
this direction. Having from early youth 
had a great de-ire for the pulpit, he had 
1' mg before this determined to enter the min- 
i-try. which he did. He Studied under the 
Methodist denomination and was ordained 
as deacon in 1878 and as elder in 1880. 
Subsequently he was a missionary 

to \ irth I >akota. where he w 
six years, having preached in this state eight 
years previously, but returned to his native 
state, where he was found preaching the 
gospel fi r a number of years 1 in account 
of heart trouble he w< eel to abandon 

the ministry in 1898 and ha- since that time 
turned his attention to agriculture. In 1899, 



COMPEXnii'M OF BIOGRAPHY 



327 



not having the pre per facilities for educat- 
ing his children in the vicinity of their home, 

lie purchased seven acres of land on the east 
limits of the city of Warsaw, where he has 
a very comfortable home. 

hi political affairs Mr. Cook cast his first 
vote for the Prohibition party. Mr. Cook 
has been twice married, first with Margaret 
Watson in the fall of 1875. She was a 
daughter of John and Salome (Heistler) 
Watson. They were the parents of one 
child, Ocie Pearl, now the wife of Alonzo 
Lehman, a resident of Wayne township. 
Mrs. Cook died in December, 1877, and he 
was married to Elizabeth Balsley, a daugh- 
ter of Phillip and Eliza (Elgenfritz) Pais- 
ley. They became the parents of three chil- 
dren : Bertha, who died aged five months, 
Frederick M. and Gerald X. Mr. Cook is 
a man of wide knowledge, being a great 
reader, a deep thinker and a good conversa- 
tionalist, and withal is a pleasing gentle- 
man ti ' meet. 



HUDSON BECK. Deceased. 

The biographer writes with a sorrowful 
heart when it becomes his duty to perform 
the task of a necrologist and to give even 
but a brief record of the career and life of 
one who was called all too soon, in the 
prime of his years, from his work of useful- 
ness on this mundane sphere. The late 
Hudson Beck was a son of Metcalfe Beck, 
one of the pioneer merchants of Kosciusko 
county, but now also deceased, and of whom 
a full record will be found on another page 
of this work, and which is fraught vvitt. 
manv incidents and circumstances connected 



with life in the early days of Kosciusko 
county and the city of Warsaw. 

Hudson Beck was horn in Leesbur-, 
Kosciusko county, Indiana. December 28, 
1839, and died at Citronelle, Alabama, May 
5, 1885. In his youth he passed several 
years in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania!, where 
he was partly educated in select schools and 
also took a commercial course of study, be- 
came a bookkeeper and acquired a thorough 
knowledge of business in general. In early 
manhood he located in Warsaw, where, in 
1862, he opened a general store and for sev- 
eral years was connected with the mercantile 
prosperity of the city. He relinquished mer- 
chandising only to take a higher step in the 
business circles of the city, county and state 
by becoming president of the Lake City 
Bank, a position he held until the hour of 
his untimely death. 

March 11, 1863, Hudson Beck was 
united in marriage at Warsaw with Mis^ 
Mary A. Johnson, and to this marriage 
were born two children, Albion and Clara. 
In 1872 he erected his handsome resilience 
on Fort Wayne street. Warsaw, where his 
family still reside. Mr. Beck traveled a 
great deal during bis latter years, making 
an extended trip through Europe f< >r the 
benefit of his health, being accompanied by 
his father. He also spent some time in Col- 
orado and one year in northern Alabama, 
where he owned and operated a plantation. 
He later visited the exposition in Xew Or- 
leans, which was the last trip he made lie- 
fore passing to the other world. 

Fraternally Mr. Beck was a Knight 
Templar Mason and was one of the three 
trustees and treasurer of the building com- 
mittee in charge of the erection of the Ma- 
sonic Temple, in which he took great inter- 



328 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



litics ;i Democrat, he was a del- 
re to the Democratic national convention 
June, 1884. Educated, intelligent, si -cial 
and magnetic, he made his mark there and 
Mr Beck was a member of the 
Christian church for twenty years and was 
a most liberal contributor to its support. 
While on a \ i --it t" Alabama ft >r the pur- 
pose of recuperating his health. Mr. Heck 
suffered from a relapse and, as stated above, 
died at Citronelle, Mobile county, that state, 
at 8:30 A. M.. May 5. 1NS5. aged forty- 
five years, four months and seven day-. His 
remain- were brought home t" Warsaw and 
the funeral services were held at his n 
•deuce in the presence of the surviving mem- 
bers "i hi- family and a vast number of 
friend.-. A hand-. me gray granite monu- 
ment in Oakwood cemetery now marks the 
spot wlu-re all that wa- mortal of this once 
nd active factor in life's bu- 

rests m peace. 

Mr-. Mary 'A. (Johnson) Beck 
daughter of Prof. Daniel Taylor Johns 

who wa- principal of the Warsaw scho 
but who. losing his voice, retired from the 
vocation of teaching and engaged in tire and 
life insurance, lie wa- born in Char 
ton. Massachusetts, in 1817* and for twenty 
: teacher, eight year- of this time 
in Warsaw, lie wa- reared a I niv er-alist. 
but at the age of thirty-two wa- converted 
t" the Methodist faith and was licensed as 
a preacher at Washington (.' . H.. Fayette 
county. Ohio In March. 1842, he mar- 
ried Mary J. White, of Muskingum coun- 
ty. Ohio, who died four years after mar- 
riage, leaving two daughters, of whom one 
now Mr-. Hudson Heck. Rev. Daniel T. 
Johnson wa- called away July 12, t88< 
linn believer in ai led by the faith 



t<> winch lie had lirty- 

. years of life in disseminating. 
( >f the two children born to Hudson and 
Mary A. (Johnson) Heck. Albion i- 

jed in private banking, and Clara, who 
wa- married to Wilber X. Funk, died when 
twenty-five years old, the mother of two 
children. Mary Salome, who died in her 
twelfth year, and Agnes Louise, 
fourteen. Mrs. Heck is a devout meml • 
the Methodist Episcopal church, and 
lady of strong intellectuality and advanced 
thought, and it may be added, with 
particle of adulation and with impunity, that 
she stands foremost in 1 m of the 

best ■ 1 unty, male 1 ir 

female. 



WILLIAM \\ . KIRKPATRICK. 

\ young, pros] nd rising farmer 

of Washington township, Kosciusko coun- 
ty. Indiana, wa- born in Tipp »wn- 
ship, the same county. Lehman 5, 
ami i- a -on of William ami Anna 1 Pierce) 
Kirkpatrick. The former was a -on of John 
Kirkpatrick. who emigrated with hi- parents 
from Kentucky to Ohio in 1X04. He was 
lxirn March <>. 1795-, and died A 
1826, leaving a widow and -i\ -mall chil- 
dren. William Kirkpatrick was born in 
Clark county. ly 19. 1 822. He came 
to this state with his widowed mother and 
her -ix children in 1836, the mother l>eing 
fortunate enough ' thousand 
dollar- in cash and an additional sum with 
which to purchase a farm. < >f this farm her 
father. William Cowan, wa- the 
and he al-o employed himself in making 
len plows. William Kirkpatrick. who 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



329 



was then a lad, no longer attended school, 
hut worked out by the month in order to 
earn money with which to aid in the sup- 
port of his mother, and this was his course 
■of life until his marriage, February 1S, 
1S47. lie then rented a farm in Plain town- 
ship, occupied it about one year and then 
bought a farm of one hundred acres in Tip- 
pecanoe and Plain townships, on which his 
children were afterward horn, and on which 
he lived until March 8, 1883, when he pur- 
chased one-quarter of section 10, in Wash- 
ington township, the greater part of which 
he impri ved. 

To the marriage of William and Anna 
Kirkp.it rick were horn nine children, name- 
ly: John \\\. born June 8. 1848, died April 

4, [849; Mary E., born February 16, [850, 
died December 6. 1861 ; Sarah J., born Sep : 
tember 5, 1852. is the wife of John T. Gil- 
liam ami lives in Tippecanoe township; Eliza 
A., bom January 12, 1855, is married to S. 
B. Long and lives in Plain township; Mar- 
garet F... born July 21, 1 S 5 7 . lives with her 
brother, William W. ; M. Pierce, born Oc- 
tober 30. i860, married Hortense Crawford, 
and lives in Pierceton; William W.. whose 
name opens this biography, born February 

5. [863 ; Eunice A., born July 2:, 1865. died 
May 7. [884; Alvin W.. born December 25, 
t86/, died August 18. 1872. 

William W. Kirkpatrick was reared on 
his father's farm, was educated in the dis- 
trict schools, and remained with his parents 
until his marriage. November [8, [896, with 
Miss Nettie M. Goshert, who was born Sep- 
tember 9, 1S74. George 1 io^hert. grandfa- 
ther of Mrs. Kirkpatrick. was a native of 
Pennsylvania ami reared in Ohio, where he 
married Susan Dilsaver. He later came to 
Kosciusko countv, Indiana, and located in 



Prairie township, where Jasper < ioshert was 
born September 9, [845. He married Lecta 
Hall, who was born also in this county, De- 
cember r8, 1854. He rented a farm for a 
few years and then bought a place in the 
same township, on which he still lives. He 
is an active member of the United Brethren 
church and one of the most highly respected 
farmers of his township. To the marriage 
of Mr. and Mrs. W. W. Kirkpatrick have 
been born two children, namely: Edith 
H., May 17, 1899. and William M.. No- 
vember 2j. 1900. The mother of the sub- 
ject died February 27, 1892. in the faith 
of the Presbyterian church, and his father 
died March 26, 1898. also a member of the 
Presbyterian church', his attendance at wor- 
ship being with the congregation at Pierce- 
ton. The subject's mother was a native of 
('lark county, Ohio, and was born March 
6, 1824. 

Fraternally Mr. Kirkpatrick is a mem- 
ber of the Knights of Pythias lodge at 
Pierceton. In politics is a Democrat in 
sentiment, but is not active as a partisan, 
having a preference for attending to his pri- 
vate affairs rather than those of the public. 



JACOB S. WEAVER. 

The subject of this review is a gentle- 
man of high standing to whom has ni >t been 
denied a full measure of success. He is dis- 
tinctively one of the representative citizens 
of Washington township, and has long been 
a recognized factor of importance in con 
nection with the agricultural interests of the 
county of Kosciusko. Mr. Weaver lias 
been conspicuously identified with the ma- 
terial growth and prosperity of this part of 



330 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



ce c< <niii - West his life 

been very closely interwoven with the 
ry of the county where he has lived for 
half a century. George Weaver was 
the father i f Jacob S. He was a native i i 
. /nia and lived in that state until after 
his mother's death, when he bid farewell to 
the familiar i his childhood home 

and started • m to make his fortune in wli.it 
hen the new and sparsely settled county 
i f Fairfield, Ohio. He was a lad of fifteen 
when he reached his destination, and for 
some time thereafter worked at the car- 
penter's trade. his services a> a builder be- 

tly prized by the early setth 
the community in which he lived. In addi- 
tion to carpentry he devoted considerable at- 
tention to cabinetmaking and for a number 
f years rail a shop where coffins and all 
kinds of furniture were manufactured to 
meet the wants of the people in a large area 
of territory. 

In 1820, when twenty-three years old, 
Mr. Weaver was united in marriage to Miss 
Mar) (lark, whose parents. Horatio and 
R chek kaii 1 Lane) (lark, were early settlers 
• f Fairfield county. In connection with me- 
chanical pursuits Mr. Weaver carried 
iculture I >iderable extent, ha\ 

owned a good farm in Fairfield county and 
r purchased a place in the county of 
Logan. In October, 1848, he closed his 
manufacturing establishment and exchanged 
his <>hi" farm for two hundred and eighty 
acres of unimproved land in Kosciusko 
nty, Indiana, the place hem- in what is 
unship of Washington. Il< 
Mr. Weaver began the task of clearing and 
improving a farm, an undertaking requir- 
much hard labor and attended with in- 
- by no means few or insignifi- 



cant. He first built a substantial hewed 
house and then addressed himself manfully 
to the clearing of his land, which was dense- 
ly ci vered with a forest growth of prim- 
itive wildness and beauty. He also put up 
a shop and. when the weather would not per- 
mit 1 f 1 utdoor work, employed the time in 
cabinetmaking, repairing, etc., by means of 
which he was enabled to earn more than 
sufficient means to defray current expenses. 
He fenced all of his laud, reduced a goodly 
number 1 if acres t, , cultivation and made 
of the hest farms in the township of W'ash- 
ingt( n. hut unfortunately did net live very 
long i" enjoy the fruits of his labors, dying 
on the 15th of April. 1858. Mi's. Weaver 
was left with a family of four children, one 

i and three daughters. The names of the 
entire family are as follows: Rebecca V. 
Elizabeth, Ge rge M.. 11 rati- C, Jac 1> S., 
Perry A., Hannah I... Martha M. and Mary 
i '. Mr. Weaver was an estimable citizen 
and a zealous member of the Christian 
church. He was noted for his honesty, in- 
dustry and a des 1 the right as he saw 
and understood the right and he died as he 
had lived, at peace with God and his fel- 
low man. 

Jac b S. W « whi m this sketch is 

dedicated, was |„ ru in Fairfield county, 
( (hio, November J. [829, and remained with 
his father, contributing t'> the support 
the family until "Id enough t" begin life for 
himself, lie was reared (■> farm labor an I 
spent the tirst nineteen years of his life in 
Ohio, his educational training being 1 
lined tu a few months' attendance each win- 
son upon the subscription scIiik.K. in 
which only the rudimentary branches were 
taught. He accompanied his parents 
Kosciusko countv. Indiana, in 1848, and 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



33i 



bore his full share in clearing and develop- 
ing the home farm in Washington township 
which he now owns. 

On the 26th day of October, 1 S 5 » > . Mr. 
Weaver and Miss Sarah Kaylor were united 
in the holy bonds of wedlock ami immedi- 
ately thereafter they began housekeeping on 
the Weaver homestead, from which they 
have never changed their habitation. Her 
parents, John and Keziah (Tracey) Kay- 
lor, were natives of Maryland, but early 
moved to Logan count}-. Ohio, where Mrs. 
Weaver was born March 27 . [836, and 
reared. Being the oldest of the family, 
many of the household duties fell upon her 
shoulders when she was but a girl, in con- 
sequence of which her early educational 
privileges were exceedingly limited. Soon 
after his marriage Mr. Weaver bought the 
home farm, which originally consisted of 
three hundred and twenty acres of hue land. 
He has sold p< rtions of the place from time 
to time, reducing it to its present area of 
cue hundred anil seventv acres, which in 
general improvements and productiveness 
are not excelled by any like amount of land 
in the county of Kosciusko. Mr. Weaver 
brought his place to high state of tillage and 
ear'-, took rank as an enterprising agricult- 
urist. The great measure -if success which 
attended his efforts while actively engaged 
in farming stands not only in evidence of his 
industry and thrift, but als<> of hi- assiduous 
application and singleness of purpose. He 
continued actively engaged in husbandry 
until 1895, when, by reasi n of the comfort- 
able fi 'l'tune acquired, he wisely concluded b 1 
cease his labors and spend the remainder of 
his days in the enjoyment of the rest and 
quiet which he had so well earned. 

Mr. Weaver is a man of unswerving in- 
20 



tegrity and his high standing in the com- 
munity is second to that of no other citi- 
zen. In public affairs he has always been 
an interested observer, his political prefer- 
ences always finding favor in the Republican 
party's principles of popular government. 
I le has never been an office seeker, but has 
ever used his influence to induce his party 
to place upon the ticket the names of men 
mentally and morally qualified for the po 
tions to be filled. Well posted upon the 
leading political issues of the day and be- 
lieving earnestly in the party with which he 
has been identified since its organization, he 
early impressed its principles and doctrines 
upon the minds of his sons, all of whom are 
tine unpromising Republican-. 

Mr. Weaver is an active worker in the 
Baptist church and for a number of years 
has held important official positions in the 
local congregation of which he is a mem- 
ber, being at the present time treasurer, clerk 
and trustee. He is an enthusiastic Sunday- 
school worker and by closely studying the 
Holy Scriptures is well prepared to teach 
successfully the class of which he now has 
charge. Mrs. Weaver is also a zealous 
Christian and as a teacher in the Sunday- 
school has done efficient service in the cause 
of religion, having by her instruction as 
well as by personal efforts induced many 
\ 1 iung people to abandon the ways of sin and 
enter the visible kingdom of the Most High: 
They are a most worthy old couple, intel- 
ligent beyond the average, and their influ- 
ence has always been powerful for good 
among their neighbor- and many friend-. 
Their Christian characters have always been 
irreproachable, and the genera] spirit of re- 
ligion which pervades their pleasant and 
hospitable home put- at ease every one who 



332 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



enters their di or. They are held in the 
profound respect by all \\h" know them and 
the ami "inn of | hich they have a< 

plished in this life will never be fully 
known and appreciated until in the [ 
day "when the books are opened" and every 
mie receives his reward for the de< 
in the body. 

The happy marriage of Mr. and Mr-. 
Weaver has been blessed with eight chil- 
dren: Mary F... wife of George Bench, of 
Whitley county, tin- state: William 11.. who 
married Fan; and lives in Washing- 

ton township, where he i- engaged in ag- 
ricultural pursuits; John A. married twice. 
In- present wife being Jessie Humble, and 

es in Washington township; G 
\\ ., also a farmer of Washington township, 
married Eveline Gilispie; Joseph M. mar- 
ried B anchard and lives in the 
of Detroit, being an employe of Park, Davis 

mpany, of that city; Sarah I-'... the next 

rder of birth, married Jehu Outkelt, a 
fanner of Washington township; Jacob E. 
married Eveline James and lives on her fa- 
ther's farm; Chai ie youngest of the 
family, is unmarried and still lives under 
the parental roof; h< die pros- 
perous young farmers of Washington town- 
ship an«l also has quite a reputation 

r of line live st. ick. 



HENRY B. FUNK. 

It I- a well-known fact. iu\ 
by physicians and by al! nho have 

made the subject a study, that a quiet life 
and steady habits promote longevity. In the 



in their desperate attempts to yet rich 
suddenly, anil where they are. of a c 
quence, on a severe nervous strain all the 
tune, the mortality tables are much higher 
than in the country. The farmer may. there- 
fore, congratulate himself that though his 
life may 1 . entful it is certainly much 

longer than is that of his cousin in the city. 
This important fact should he borne in mind 
when the young men catch the fever t'> he 
clerks in some cheap grocery in a town or 
village. How much better is the life of the 
farmer who lias won a line farm from the 
dens,.- reared a large family of chil- 

dren, made a comfortable home, and finally 
goes i" his reward beloved by all who have 
the h his friendship. Some such a 

man i* the subject of this sketch, lie was 
born in Stark county, I '.pril 5, 1827, 

and is the si n of Jacob and Catherine ■ 
ler 1 Funk. Martin Funk, the grandfather 
of subject, came acr. i<« the ocean from tier- 
many many y< and settled in Penn- 
sylvania, and there the Funk family in 
America originate - reared in 
the Keysti ne state, and received in his youth 
the usual education afforded | vs in 
the v. 1 Ie learned the bus 
farming and stock raising and proved more 
than ordinarily successful in those import- 
ant branches of labor. He married in l'enn- 
iia. and soon afterward came to Ohio 
and settled in Stark county on a farm where 
Henry, his son, was brought up and edu- 
cated. When Henry was nineteen years old 
he began to work oul by the month, and 
coming to the conclusion thai it was not well 
for man to live alone he married Miss Polly 
Beigh, the daughter of nnie 
Beigh, one of the most important acts of his 
from many standpoints. She was a na- 



COMPEXnii'M OF BIOGRAPHY 



333 



rive of Seneca county. Ohio, and was born 
Jul_\- 9, 1831, and was brought to this coun- 
ty in 1837. ' ler father settling in (lay town- 
ship, or what is now Lake township. There 
•the father entered a tract of land and be- 
gan to clear off the dense timber and fight 
the wolves from his sheep and calves. To 
Mr. and Mrs. Funk four children were born, 
a- follows: Ireal, born in 1850 and died 
in infancy; Fanny, who became the wife of 
Jeremiah Windbigler and lives in Marshall 
county, Indiana; to them were born four 
children, two sons and two daughters, of 
whom three are living, as follows: Levi, 
Mary and Anna; Anna C. born December 
28, 1855: Mary Alice, born December 16. 
[860, became the wife of Monroe Paulus 
and resides in Silver Lake, Indiana; of their 
children, three sons and a daughter, one is 
deceased, the names of the others being 
Cloice, Glent and Meeta M. In 1840 the 
Funk family came to this township and here 
Mr. Funk bought one hundred and twenty 
aero of land, all of which was enveloped 
with a heavy growth of timber. The family 
\\ 1 placed in a rude log house and the task 
of clearing was begun. At that time the 
woods were filled with wild animals, and 
great havoc was created among the live 
Stock, particularly the calves and sheep. 
Eternal vigilance was the price of safety. 
and this was kept up until in the course of 
time the wild animals disappeared. Steadily 
Mr. Funk added to his land until he now 
owns one hundred and sixty-five acres one 
mile north of Silver Lake. In his time he 
cleared up a farm of ninety-five acres. He 
is -lie of the best citizens of the county, and 

1- respected everywhere for his many g 1 

qualities. He is a Republican and takes 
much interest in the success of his party. 



From the deep woods where savage animals 
and savage Indians lived to this condition 
of peace and comfort this well-known fam- 
ily has passed, in a generation and a half. 
At first their nearest trading point was 
North Manchester and Liberty Mills, but 
the times are changed now. and these old 
and respected people are passing away with 
the old order of things still fresh in their 
heart. Mr. Funk was. on May 3. 1902. bap- 
tized in the German Baptist (Dunkard) 
church. 



SOLOMON HEETEK. 

Jackson township. Kosciusko county, In- 
diana, furnished a home for many a pioneer 
who settled within its boundaries with no 
capital save the intelligence and physical 
abilities that were the gifts of his Maker 
and later attained a competency and a pi >- 
sition of influence in the locality in which 
he chose to reside that, in after years, re- 
dounded in an enviable reputation for him- 
self and his descendants; among these old 
and honored pioneers is Solomon Heeter. 
who was born in Montgomery county, Ohio, 
November 22, 1829. 

David and Elizabeth ( Hay) Heeter, 
parents of Solomon, were natives of Penn- 
sylvania, of German descent, and from that 
state they migrated to Ohio about the year 
1808, and there, in the interminable forests 
of Montgomery county, entered a tract of 
most unpromising land. This David in due 
course of time, by hard labor and perse- 
verance, such as were usual in the back- 
woods in those early days, cleared up from 
the growth of superfluous timber and erected 
the typical log cabin of the period, in which 



■ 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



many a happy hour was passed, notwith- 
standing the incessant care and labor that 
ry to devi home that 

tually pr urce of 

profit. 
After hi- marriage t<> Miss Hay. wl 
ere natives 
Heeter purchased forty aire- of land in 
Montgomery county, ' d deep in the 

licit he partially cleared and here. 

I le t: it and bought a tract 

i- hundred acres nearer Dayton city. 

to which he later added eighty acre-, hut in 

1853 Jd out and came t" Indiana. 

sh county, where he b 
a far: . enty acre- in 

iwnship, near Xorth Manchester, 
lich he lived until the opening of the 
Civil war. Then he bought a small place 
. where n the 

[welling, but 
npletii 'ii ; his w idow, how 
1 1 the hou 

I >a\ id and Elizabeth 
(Hay) Heeter were born eight children. 

; muel, 
. \hner. Barnet, Franklin Marion and Har- 
riet, of whom ti\ 1 

[eeter v 
farm and faithfully aided in it- cul- 
tivation until he was twenty-five years 
and then worked at chop] -wood at 

twenty-fi I and at splitting 

at twenty-five cent- per hundred. 
March 31, 1853. Mr. I lei- united in 

marriage with M L Mau-e. 

born in Maryland November 26, 
nan parentage. From Mary- 
land the Mau-e family removed to Mont- 
ry county, ' »hi". where Catherii 



:<: acquainted with Mr. Heeter. In 

and his young wife 

came t" Indiana, and in Wabash county Mr. 

er purchased a farm 
to which he added another eighty-acre tract, 
and there made his home tint 
he brought his family to Jack-. .11 ti w: 
■unty. where he purcl 
eight) ear the place "ii which hi 

nd now 1 
hundred and forty acre- in K and 

;-h counties, lie i- an excellent mun- 
: in 1 ha- realized a competence thr 
grain in large quantities audi in 
ck. 
The marriage of Mr. and Mr-. S 
r has bi .'.ith six chil 

\Y.. born March s. [855 
Mi-- Mai E nks and live- in \\ . 
county; John !•'.. born Sep 14. 1856, 

married Eliza Nam. and also lives in Wa- 
ty : Warren I'... born August 18. 
1858, married Mary Pauling, now 
and lives in tin : Washington : I : 

rn July ii. t86o, married Prude K 
man and lives in Wabash county; David E.,' 
born October 15. 1863, died July 19, 1865; 
and Charl 1 April 15. 

married < p, and 1- 

dent of Wabash county, Indiana. 

Mr. Heeter i- a Democrat in hi- 1 
ical proclivities, hut ha- never been -tr 
partisan nor has he ever put himself 
ward seeker. 1 le i-. hov • 

a public-spirited citizen and a wh 
man. ever ready t" help forward any work 
■ ed for the public good. He ha- done 
much toward bringing Jackson t" the front 
among the sisterhood of townships of K 
county, and i- recognized by all as 
of it- most useful 1 ind i- 1 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



335 



quently greatly honored and respected. Fra- 
ternally he is a member of the Knights of 
Honor at North Manchester. 



JAMES H. ANGLIN. 

A many-times millionaire of this coun- 
try recently said: "Money dues not make 
a man happy. I would give up all the wealth 
I have rather than be denied the pleasure 
that comes from the study of literature and 
art. If Shakespeare and Wagner, the moun- 
tain peaks of literature and music, were 
taken out of my life, life would be poor in- 
deed. Millionaires who live mostly for 
making money have a sorry time of it." 
When this statement is carefully studied it 
is found to mean that money of itself does 
not make a man happy. Or in other words, 
put a man in comfortable circumstances. 
beyond want, and then money as such loses 
its value as a producer of happiness. But it 
must be acknowledged that what is meant 
by comfortable circumstances includes 
enough time for recreation, enough books 
for instruction and culture, and enough lib- 
erty to travel everywhere. When the indi- 
vidual has reached this condition he is pre- 
pared to enjoy life and needs no money. 
But a great many people have reached vari- 
ous stages of this condition and in that pro- 
portion are happy. Most people imagine 
their troubles. It is now well known that 
the state of the mind has everything to do 
with the state of the temper. When one 
can reduce existence to the happy state of 
the subject of this sketch he is prepared to 
enjoy a considerable degree of happiness. 
!t requires a philosophic mind to be able to 



do this, but in a large measure this state 
has been reached by the subject. He is ye1 
a young man, his birth having occurred in 
Prairie township, Kosciusko county. Sep- 
tember 15. [872. He is the child of Sam- 
uel D. and Axie S. 1 Boggs ) Anglin. The 
Anglin family are of Scotch-Irish descent 
and in this country hail from the Old Do- 
minion, where their ancestors settled many 
years ago. The grandfather of subject, 
James Anglin, in company with his two 
brothers, David and Isaac, and one sister, 
came to Indiana in the decade of the 'thirties 
and settled in the northern part of Kosci- 
usko county, where they entered land from 
the government. James Anglin was twice 
married, first to Miss Hall, who bore him 
these children: David, Harvey, Wesley, 
Mary, Fletcher and Samuel D. His first 
wife having died, he married Mrs. Scott, 
wdiose maiden name was Xogle. and by her 
hail the following children: Ella. Ida, Til- 
lie and McClellan. 

Samuel D. Anglin was reared on a farm 
and attended the common schools of the 
neighborhood during the winters. He was 
an apt student and learning came to him al- 
most by intuition. At an early age he mas- 
tered the common-school branches anil then 
I easily passed the examination required of 
teachers and began to teach. He was a 
natural instructor and t' ok a broad viei 
education and the pleasure it brought to the 
recipient, and from the start made an un- 
usual success of it. So great, indeed. 
hi- success that he found it to his advan 
to continue, which he did for twenty-nine 
years. During this period he not only kept 
up his private studies, but also attend, 
commercial school a! Pittsburg, Pennsyl- 
vania. It \\y uld be difficult to describe how 






COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



far Mr. Anglin became 1 in his 

studies, but he certainly I _-reat deal 

ction from his books. 1 [is mar- 
urred in 1866, his wife be 
daughter of Hamilton and Martha B 
'I"', their marriage four children were born, 
lows: Etta E., born in 1870, became 
the wife 1 f Andrew E. Sarber and now re- 
sides m Seward township; James II.. sub- 
ject; T. Wayne, born in 1*74. who finished 
In- education at the North Manchester 
: 'in- year, ami at the Northern Indi- 
ana Normal School at Valparaiso, taught 
four years in the common schools and then 
began the study of law at Indianapolis and 

duly admitted to the bar, graduating in 
'.he -print; .f [899. He 1- W H practicing 
hi- profession at Warsaw. In [90] he was 
appointed a comity officer; Rolla, horn in 
who finished his education at the high 
school of Warsaw and i- now with his fa- 
ther on the farm, married Mi-- 1'earl lluf- 
fer. 

lame- I I. \nglin, the subject, was reared 
mainly on his father'- farm, and learned all 
that the common scho d teach him at 

an early aye. He finished by attending two 
years at college. Tin- greatl) broadened 
hi- mind ami made a philosopher of him, 
meaning by the term philosophy sound com- 
mon sense and a keen insight into the 
motive- ><i men. All tin- wa- valuable, be- 

e Mr. Anglin wa- not a millionaire and 
must get happiness out of existence in 
manner. So he went to work in earnest, 
Inn maintained hi- buoyancy sition, 

a very valuable | n. lie has now a 

good -tart in this world -. both in 

property and in a clear conscience His 
marriage did much to brighten hi- exist- 
it alwavs should the exist 



any man. He wa- happily married to Miss 
Myrtle Sprott on i_\ [893. She 

wa- horn in 1S7J. the daughter of John ami 
Mary (Mort) Sprott, and possesses many 
- and womanly accomplishments. She 
i- a graduate of the high school at Wai 

e year at the Northern Indi- 
ana Normal School at Valpan : e be- 
gan to teach in 1890 and, with the c 
tion ,,f two year-, has taught ev< 
She is now teaching in the primary depart- 
ment of the school- of Silver Lake, her 
Ity being in the lower grades. Mr. 
and Mr-. Anglin came to Silver Lake in 
1897, where Mr. Anglin lir-' 
the hotel business, continuing for two - 
He then served as justice of the ; 
two years. His hotel was sold in 1899 and 
he then entered into the hardware busi 
in partnership with C. I-. Leonard and is 
thus engaged at present, having built up a 
large trade. He i- a Democrat, i- • 
of the school hoard, and hi- genial and in- 
tellectual qualities make him a charming 
companion and a tru-ted friend. Hi- wife 
1- a member of the Christian church of 
Warsaw, and is a teacher in the Sunday- 
school of that organization. 



NICH( U. AS <;. GRIPE 

The sul 'hi- review has 

joyed distinctive precedence a- one of Jack- 
son township's most enterprising am! 
cessful agriculturists and stock-raisei 
the same time enjoying the reputation of 
-ne of Kosciusko county's representative 
men of affair- \\^ i- the -on of Samuel 
me (Frantz) Gripe, both earl) set- 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



337 



tiers of the county, and dates his birth from 
the 13th day of June, 1852. When lie was 
about two years old his parents moved to 
the township of Jackson and here Nicholas 
C. Gripe grew to manhood amid the peace- 
ful scenes of rural life, assisting his father 
on the farm and as opportunities afforded 
attending the district schools, in which he 
obtained a fair knowledge of the branches 
constituting the prescribed course. On at- 
taining his majority he engaged with a 
neighbor as a farm hand and after continu- 
ing as such for one year leased a. piece of 
woodland and set to work to clear the same. 
With strong arm, backed by a determined 
purpose he addressed himself to this under- 
taking and in due time cleared from the 
green and fitted for cultivation fifty acres, 
cutting from the same about two thousand 
o>rds of wood, which he sold at a good 
profit. He continued to deal in wood and 
cultivate the land he developed for about 
five years, when he bought forty acres 
where his father now lives, on which he 
erected a good residence and barn and other- 
wise improved the place, making it one of 
the hest farms of its area in the township. 
Subsequently he traded this for the same 
number of acres of the old homestead, to 
which he has made additions from time to 
time until he is the possessor of two hun- 
dred and forty acres in one body, conser- 
vatively estimated to be worth sixty-five dol- 
lars per acre. 

Mr. Grij>e has met with success as a 
farmer such as few attain and he stands to- 
day in the front ranks of Jackson town- 
ship's most enterprising agriculturists, also 
ranking with the leading sti ck raisers in 
this section of the state. In the management 
of his affairs he displays rare business tact 



and as a financier he ha-- no superiors among 
the farmers of Kosciusko county. Keeping 
fully abreast the times in all matters pertain- 
ing to husbandry, he has spared neither time 
nor expense in bringing his place to the 
high state of cultivation for which it is 
noted, also being liberal in his expenditures 
in the way of beautifying his home and 
making it attractive. His dwelling is com- 
modious and comfortable in all of its ap- 
pointments and his large stock barn, erected 
some years ago. is one of the most complete 
structures of its kind in the county, also one 
of the most valuable. lie has since built an- 
other barn and addition thereto. As a breed- 
er and raiser of fine live stock Mr. Gripe en- 
joys much more than local reputation, being 
widely and favorably known among men 
similarly engaged in Kosciusko and other 
counties of northern and central Indiana. 
He makes a specialty of cattle and horses, 
owning at the present time a large number 
of very fine animals, representing a capital 
of many thousands of dollars. Blessed with 
strong bodily power and richly endowed 
with that most to be deserved of all capital, 
good common sense, he finds little difficulty 
in managing his large interests and seldom 
fails to make everything to which he turns 
his hand inure largely to his benefit. Prog- 
ress has been his motto from the beginning 
and his career throughout presents a succes- 
sion of advancements which have won for 
him the high standing- he to-day enjoys as 
an active, enterprising man in worldly 
affairs. 

Mr. Gripe's character is endowed with 
many noble qualities that contribute so much 
to his eminent usefulness and the esteem in 
which he is held by his fellow citizens of 
Jackson and neighboring townships. His 



338 



COMI'EXDIL'M OF BlooR.if'UV. 



kindliness of heart, his unvaried cheerful 

disposition, his wisdom as a counsellor and 

adviser among his neighbors and friends 

and his modest unassuming manner in ever) 

relation of life, are among 1 ' dis- 

ished characteristics which hav< 

ed to him the many warm friends whom 

he pr highly and whose warm per- 

I he will always retain. 

Mr. Gripe is a valued member of the 
German Baptist church and has contributed 
materially to the SUO that larg< 

respected communion in Ki sciusko county. 
Earnest in his piety and ever ready I 
tend a helping hand to a needy broth 
any other worthy person, he makes 
tentations display of his religion, performing 
hi- charitable deed- ace. rding to the script- 
ural injunction, and hi- daily exem- 
plify the simple doctrine which lie ind 

Mr. Gripe's married life began in the 
year 1875, at which time Miss 
Mai-. n became hi- wife. Mrs. Gripe's par- 
ent- moved from Ohio t>. Whitley county, 
Indiana, in an early day and bore an active 
part in the development of that part of the 

-tate. settling in the w 1- and hearing their 

full -hare of the trial- and hardship- inci- 
[o the ] I. Mr. and Mrs. 

Gripe have been blessed with three children, 
the eldest of whom. Elmer, rn in 

July. 1876; he wa- educated in the common 
nd at tl under 

the parental roof and in runnhi 

home farm. who wa- born in the 

ill a member 
circl< the young 

birth occurred in April. 1882. 

Like her husband, Mr-. < iri| 1 arn- 

lurch worker and her influenci 
; in shaping d the live- 1 f the 



children given her. A- a whole, the family 
is an intelligent ami harmonious one. highly 
:ied in the community and noted for 
the enterprise ami thrift with which 
men 



SAMUEL LEIGHTY. 

• few men in Kosciusko county. In- 
diana, have witi the phenomenal 
Ijes that have taken place within the 
territorial limit- of this county within the 

till live to narrate 
their experience from the early pioneer days 
up t.. tin- !i..ur of ait advanced civ- 

ilization, as doe- Samuel l.eighty. the ven- 
erable subject of thi- biographical mention 
and now a hi. jpected retired farmer. 

ha\ ii nee in Warsaw. 

nuel l.eighty was born in a log cabin 

on a farm in Knox county, 

i*_\-. and when eleven yi was 

_ it to K county. Indiana, by 

his parents, John and Catherine (Baker) 

ty. native- of Pennsylvania — th< 
ther from Lancaster county — hut who were 
married in Knox county. Ohio. 

er the birth of their son, Samuel. 

county and then r< unty. 

they lived five years in a new 

In the month of August, 1836, they 

unty, Indiana, and lo- 

W'ar- 

-aw. where John l.eighty entered forty 

of wild land, now be 

up tl nd and put up a 

cabin, but 

and i 'id claim 1 f one hun- 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



339 



dred and sixty acres. Congress had passed 
an enactment that owners of such claims, 
who were actual settlers, should have the 
right mi' occupancy fur five years and then 
pay for the land at the rate of one dollar 
and twenty-five cents per acre, without in- 
terest in' taxation, provided a habitation of 
some kind had been erected. Mr. Leigh ty 
therefore put up a small lug cabin, and in 
April. 1837, placed his family therein; hav- 
ing complied with the requirements of the 
law. he live years later received his deed 
from the government. In the meanwhile 
Mr. Leighty did a great deal of work for 
others, by which he made a livelihood. 

At the end of five years John Reed, of 
Michigan, went to the land office at Delphi 
to prove up and pay Mr. Leighty's indebted- 
ness tn the government and at the same time 
to enter land for himself on the opposite side 
of the Tippecanoe river. Two vears later 
Mr. Leighty sold out and removed tn Elk- 
hart county, where he purchased a tract of 
eighty acres on the boundary line, three 
miles north of Milford, where he lived six 
months and then came to Warsaw, where 
lie worked at such jobs as he could find to 
di 1. barely making a living; but shortly after- 
ward he bought fifty-two acres, a mile and 
a half north, which tract had been entered 
from the government in the usual -manner 
by a Mr. Crosby. On this tract Mr. Leighty 
settled, worked hard, and in due course if 
time increased his acreage in one hundred 
and sixty acres, or a quarter-section, il be- 
ing known as the "Cut-off." This land Mr. 
Leighty also improved, and lived on until 
his death in 1845, only nine years after hav- 
ing come to Indiana, he being but forty- 
seven years of age. 

Samuel Leighty at this time was twenty 



years of age and was the eldest in a family 
of seven children, his next brother in order 
of birth being about fourteen. The mother 
kept the children together, however, and 
Samuel, in accordance with his father's will, 
was to pay the debts and rear the children. 
The creditors allowed him ten years time, 
but at the end of five years Samuel had 
liquidated all claim- and became owner of 
the farm, with the exception of what the 
brothers fell heir tn. and this he eventually 
purchased from them; his mother he kept 
with him the remainder of her life and must 
filially cared for her. Samuel married a 
neighbor girl, .Mi-- Sarah Limes, and sell- 
ing his farm, bought another, three miles 
south of Warsaw, buying up the interests 
of nine heirs to one hundred and twenty 
acres. This he increased to one hundred 
and sixty acres and occupied this farm until 
about twenty years ago, in the meanwhile 
improving it with a good dwelling and other 
buildings. Here he handled a great deal of 
stuck in connection with general farming. 
Mr. Leighty then retired to Warsaw, where 
he now lives in well deserved comfort and 
ease. 

In 1878 Mr. Leighty Inst bis first wife 
by death, and in 1880 he married Mrs. 
Qarissa Wheeler, of Clay township. Tn 
the first marriage <<i Mr. Leighty there were 
born four children, namely: Samuel k., 
whii now owns and lives on the old h 
stead; George W.. also living on a pan 1 £ 
the same: Daniel D., farming four miles 
north of Warsaw, ami Su< the wife 

of William Crouse, of Warsaw. Tn thi 
ond marriage no children have been born. 
Mr. Leighty ha- also reared his eldesl sis 
ter's daughter from the age of four years 
until her marriage tn Eli Barrett, a resident 



34° 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



of Michigan. Mr-. Leighty bore the maiden 
name of Lef< id by marriage with 

i Wheeler was the motl three 

four 'la;; iz : [saac, Sarah 

J.. Alice. An li, Ida M. and Will- 

iam S. 

Tli rat. 

Mr. Leighty has never v. .ted that ticket. 
havii \ presidential vote for 

Zachariah Taylor, and has ever since sup- 
ported the principle- <>f the Republican 
party. 1 1 accept public 

iny kind, although a very popular 
man and frequently urged t. • place his name 
before the public. Religiously Mr. Leighty 
member i f the Walnut Creek United 
Brethren church, has fully and faithfully 
lived up to its teachings and has on all co- 
ntributed most freely towards its 
support. He has risen in life entirely 
through his own industry ai man- 

today stands among the mosl 
K< sciusko o >unty's pioneers. 



SAMUEL GRIPE. 



Through a period of six decades the 
name of Gripe has been prominently con- 
nected with the history of Kosciusko coun- 
ty. It is an untarnished name and one that 

•Miliar t>> the A this secti 

the state by reason of the honorable and use- 
ful lives of those who have borne it. 

•nue! Gripe, of this reviev itle- 

man wh ry forms a connecting link 

between the past and the modern 

it. He saw the country when it 

■i the borders of civiliza- 

wild and uncultivated, its 



ding in their primeval strength and 
beauty, it- few log cabin homes like niches 
in tlie surrounding wilderness, and it- evi- 
dence- of development few. In the work 
progress and improvement that ha- since 
wrought such marvelous changes he- 
art and today he ranks with 
trong-armed, firm-willed, substantial 
valued citizen- of the county who laid 

id and deep the foundation of it- prea 
prosperity and fitted it for the -till greater 
progress which future years have i' 

Samuel Gripe i- a native of Montgomery 
county, i tnd a lineal descendant 

■i Gripe, who came to America from 
i rermany in a verj early clay and settled in 
Lancaster county, Pennsylvania. In the I 
ter county and state was lx>rn many y« 

r a grandson of the above John Gri 
Jacob hy name, who when a young man 
went to Montgomery county, < Hiio, and set- 
tled in Dayton, when that now flourish 
city was an insignificant backwoods hamlet 
of perhaps a dozen small log cabins. Enter- 
ing land within the present limits of the 
place, he cleared and developed a farm and 
for a number of years thereafter assisted in 
paving the way for the wonderful civil: 
tion for which that highly favored 

the Buckeye state i- so justly celebrated. 
In his young manhood Jacob Gripe married 
Mary Wilond, who was reared in the fam- 
ily of her husbands father in Pennsylvania, 
iier parent- having died when she Wi 
small, leaving her to the care of friend-. 
After making a y 1 home near Dayton ami 

upying the same until 1836, Mr. < iripe 
m.ule a tour of inspection through van 
rthern Indiana, and being pie.: 
with the advantages which Kosciusko coun- 
ty presented a- a future agricultural 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



34i 



entered a tract of land in what is now the 
township of Jackson. Returning to Ohio, 
he disposed of his interests there as soon as 
he could advantageously do so, and with his 
family moved in 1838 to his new home in 
the wilds of Kosciusko. Addressing him- 
self with strong will to the task of clearing 
his land, he in due time removed a goodly 
portion of the forest growth and was at 
length rewarded with a comfortable home, 
which he occupied until death called him 
from the scenes of his earthly toils and 
struggles. Jacob Gripe was a good man and 
figured pn miinently during the pioneer peri- 
od not only as a strong and stalwart woods- 
man and tiller of the soil, but also as a min- 
ister of the gospel, having been the first 
preacher of the German Baptist church to 
proclaim the peculiar tenets of that faith in 
Kosciusko and counties adjoining. He was 
instrumental in organizing a number of local 
congregations in the new country and while 
he lived looked after their interests with 
fatherly care and ministered to his people in 
holy things as long as his strength permitted 
him to di-charge the duties of his sacred of- 
fice. His family consisted of ten children, 
six sons and four daughters, namely: 
Esther, Elizabeth, Susan. Sarah, Samuel, 
Hannah, Barbara, John, Jacob, Mary, David 
and Catherine. 

Samuel Gripe, the direct subject of this 
sketch, was horn April 18, [828, in Mont- 
gomery county, Ohio, and when a lad of 
ten years accompanied his parents to a new 
home and a new destiny in the county of 
Kosciusko. Reared amid the active scenes 
of pioneer times, he experienced the hard- 
^hip^ and vicissitudes which fail to the early 
settlers and while still young in years 



learned how to wield the ax with telling ef- 
fect and to perform other duties recpiired 
of the backwi " ids farmer. Circumscribed by 
conditions of which boys of the present day 
have no conception, his life was somewhat 
isolated and from early dawn to dewy eve 
he labored hard and faithfully, assisting to 
clear the farm and reduce the soil to culti- 
vation. He recalls the fact that throughout 
one long, cold, bitter winter it fell to him 
to furnish all the wood needed to keep the 
temperature of their log cabin above the 
freezing point, and although the task was a 
hard one he did the work manfully and well. 
Deer were then so plentiful that but little 
skill was required to keep the table supplied 
with the choicest meat, while other game, 
such as squirrels, pheasants and wild tur- 
keys, were also numerous and easily ob- 
tained. Mr. Gripe states that when he was 
a lad of twelve he shouldered his father's 
rifle ami went to the wood in quest of deer. 
He was not long in dislodging a fine buck 
and taking deliberate aim had the good for- 
tune to bring the noble animal down with 
the first shot, quite a skillful feat for one 
so young. After that he killed a great many 
deer and as long as wild game continued in 
the country he was considered one of the 
surest shots in the neighborhood where he 
lived. In a diminutive log cabin, sparsely 
furnished with log-legged, backless benches 
and a lew other necessary appliances, he was 
inducted into the mysteries of the alphabet , 
and though many long years have elapsed 
since first timidly entering the building he 
easily recalls the teacher, one Gabriel Swi- 
hart, whose qualifications for the office ap- 
pear to have based upon strength to inflict 
D 1 1" ral punishment rather than upon ability 



34- 1 



PENDIUM 'rRAPHY. 



tn impart knowledge. Later he went to 
to Joseph I'lrich. a typical peda- 
gogue of the olden times, and as the years 
ntinued i ute his studies 

both iii English and German until he be- 
came fairly well educated. Another fact in 
connection with the early day worthy Df 
passing notice is the raising of Jacob Gripe's 
frame barn, which proved quite an important 
event in the community, as it was the first 
Structure of the kind erected within the 

nl limits of Jackson township. 'I 
cure the necessar) assistance the boys 
vited every man within a radius of ten 

• and after the frame was all i 
and put in proper place a f jollity 

and manly sports was indulged in by all the 
strong young men present. 

Mr. ('.ripe was reared a farmer and when 
old enough to select a vocation wi-ei\ 
eluded t.i devote his life t.> the cultivation of 
the soil. The better t'> carry mi his life 
work, he took in himself a wife in the per- 
son of Miss Sal.. me Frantz, whose parents, 
native^ of Virginia, came t.< Kosciusko 
county in 1840 when Mr<. Gripe was a miss 
1 if twelve year-. Shortly after his marriage 
Mr. Gripe moved mi an eighty-acre trad of 

Hand in I n-hip, now the town- 

ship of Lake, where he built a cabin fur the 

tion of his bride and then began the 
arduous work of timber, removing 

stumps and in many other ways preparing 
the soil for tillage. After living on this place 
four years and fitting about twenty acres 
M it f"V fifteen hun- 
dred dollars and with the p pur- 

ed a farm in the eastern part 1 
township. The greater part 1 if the latter 
was improved by his labor and in due time 



the pla -t farms in 

that se 'he county, and lie made it 

his home for a period of about twenty years. 
Subsequently lie bought, for twelve thou- 
sand d"llar<. the beautiful place of two hun- 
dred and fnrty acres in Jackson where his 
Nichols now live-, going in debt t.i the 
ami mm of four thousand dollars, ever) cent 
which was paid within tv. follow- 

ie pure! 
Mr. Gripe's business transactions nave 
demonstrated financial ability of a high "r- 
der, and hi- career throughout ha- been 
characterized by -mind judgment, keen dis- 
cernment and concentration of pur] 
which have enabled him to carry t. ■ success- 
ful issue every enterprise to which his en- 
ergies haw been addressed. In a word, he 
has been a successful money getter, and the 
large fortune which he now possesses is the 
reward of his industry, thrift and superior 
mai t. When they started in life 

themsel each of his -ix chil- 

ty-three hundred dollars, thus en- 
abling them to begin the struggle unham- 
pered b) the circumscribed financial environ- 
ment which marked the beginning 1 »f his 1 >wn 
career v- an independent factor in worldly 
affairs. 1',, t nd arduous toil and rigid 
nomy at a time when economy was an 
absolute necessity, he learned to place a 
proper value upon dollars and cents; h 
er, he is by no means illiberal with his 
the contrary has been free in 
his be 1 all worthy 1 bjects and 

enterprises. After a long and very active 
life, marked b industn and thrift, 

found himself in possession of a suffi- 
of thi- urn 

nd the remainder of his days in the 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



343 



enjoyment of that rest and quietude which 
he so well and nobly earned; accordingly 
about the year [889 he tinned his large ag- 
ricultural interests over to other hands and 
since that date has been living a life of hon- 
orable retirement on a small place, the care 
of which keeps the time from hanging heav- 
ily upon his hands. 

Politically Mr. Gripe is a Republican. 
He had the pleasure of casting a ballot for 
the party's first presidential candidate, John 
C. Fremont, and has voted for each suc- 
ceeding candidate from that time to the 
present. While deeply interested in 
ical matters and a careful student of the 
great questions of the times, he is not a 
partisan, nor has he ever entertained any 
ambition in the direction of public office. In 
1849 ne united with the German Baptist 
church and during all the years intervening 
between that and the present his daily walk 
and conversation have marked him as an 
humble and sincere follower of the man of 
Nazareth. His good wife is also a member 
1 if the same church and, like her husband, is 
noted for her piety and zeal in the Master's 
service. Mr. and Mrs. Gripe are among the 
oldest and most highly esteemed people of 
Kosciusko county, noted far and wide for 
their generous hospitality and beloved for 
their man}" amiable qualities of head and 
heart. They arc deservedly popular with all 
who know them, live happily and content- 
edly in their cosy country home, the dour- 
of which are ever open to the poor and 



\U >B S. KOI >NTZ. 



nced\. ami are now crowning a life of ac- 
tivity and usefulness with an eventide of 
well earned rest and wholesome recreation. 
They have children a- follows: John, de- 
1, Nicholas, Mary, Jacob, Catherine 
and Abraham L... all well settled in life. 



Highly respected as a citizen and h 
"red a- a patriotic defender of the stars 
and stripe> in a war which tested the solid- 
ity and perpetuity 1 f American's free insti- 
tutions, the subject of this brief review is 
distinctively one 1 f the leading men of the 
ti wnship where he maintains his residence 
and is in every way worthy of mention with 
the progressive and representative citizens 
■ 1 lv sciusko county. 

Jao 1) S. Koontz was b< rn September 
1. 1842, in Columbiana county. Ohio, and 
is descended from German and Dutch an- 
cestry. His father. Jacob K ontz, a native 
1 t Pennsylvania, was the grandson of a 
German soldier, who came to America dur- 
ing the war of the Revolution in the service 
of the English gi vernment. Being a con- 
script and by no means liking the idea of 
1 ppi sing the little army of patriots strug- 
gling for their liberties against a tyrannical 
king, this ancestor. John Kutz by name, 
deserted his command and cast his fortunes 
with the colonists, with whom he foughl 
ci uragei »usly until independence was se- 
cured. Shortly after the close of the war 
he married and settled in Pennsylvania, 
where he reared a family and became a well- 
to-do tiller of the soil. His grand 
Jacob Koontz referred to above, was born 
in Pennsylvania and about the year 1S35 
migrated to Columbiana county. Ohio. He 
had married in Pennsylvania Anna Kutz, 
wlio^e ancestors came from Holland in an 
early day and settled in Maryland. Subse- 
quently, lN.^.s. the Kutz family removed to 
the county of Columbiana, where Jacob 
Koontz, shortly after his marriage, pur- 
chased land, and engaged in the pursuit of 



344 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



agriculture, lit- continued to live then 
nl 1893, when lie di 1 f his int( 
and came ti k< sciusko county, Indiana, 
where ent the remainder of his day-. 

dying here about twi after his 

rival; his wife preceded him to the 

':. departing this life in < >hio in the 
1875. To Jao 1> ami Anna 1 Kutz I K 

:i nine children, whose names 
a- follows: Robert, John, Elizabeth, 
Mary, Jacob S., Isaac, William. Eli and 
Anna M. ( >f this number Jacob S., R 
and Isaac served with distinction in the 

I i\;l war and proved their loyalty i- 

the government mi many of the hi liest 

Wattle fields of that great struggle. 

Jacob S. Koontz spent his childhood and 
youth amid the quiet scenes ••! rural lite 
and when old ei perform manual 

labor was pul rk on the farm, where 

in due time he developed a strong and 
<■ which served him well 
in the an experiences through which 

tbsequently passed while following 
old Hay through the sunny southland. 
With limited educational advantages, he 
made the m» -t of hi- opportunities, hut at 

the age <<i nineteen closed hi- 1 k-. laid 

aside the implemei isbandry and with 

true patriotic fervor tendered his services 
to the government, which at that time was 
being threatened by the armed hosts of re- 
bellion. In [861 he enlisted in Company 

ighty-fiffb Ohio Volunteer Infantry, 

for the three-months service and immedi- 
ately thereafl mpanied hi- regiment 
to W'esl Virginia, where he remained until 
the expiration of his term. Animated by a 
laud:; 1 rve his country -till 
further. Mr. Koontz became a nicml 
Company B, Twelfth I I I avalry, enlist- 
r three r during the war. and 



it was not 1< ng until hi- regiment m 
ive »ed with the enemy in th« 

of Kentucky and Virginia. He took p 

in a number of encounter-. I which. 

at Marion, Virginia, he was struck b) 
el hullet which caused him to he carried 
ii the field in a helpless and dai 

dition. By reason of the defeat and 

■ 

falling hack od the Union forces, the 
unded, among whom was Mr. Koontz, 

fell into the hand- enemy and from 

December 29, 1864, till March of 

g he was held war. 

lit- . q his w< iund ami 

within three months after being exch, 

rable discharged, being mustered 
■ in of tin.- service in June. 1865. I 

I of twenty-four years Mr. Koontz 
carried in y the leaden missile which 

pierced him at the battle of Marion. I 
relieved >-i it by a skillful sill ;>era- 

tion performed in 1889. He proved . 

ildier under many d I try- 

ing circumstance-, always ready for any 
duty, how 1 rou>. and never shirking 

a responsibility, no difference into what sit- 
uation it led him. By reasi n of hi- injury, 
fn 111 the ■' which he has • 

tirely reco\'ered, he is now the recipient of 
a pension from the government which he 
-o gallantly defended, hut no monetary 

• repay him for 

ice- well and faithfully rendered, nor does 

He reward for the wound received in 

duty at a time when he 

faced death that our nation might remain as 

it- i it. 

Returning home at the expiration of his 
of enlistment Mr. K- ■ ■ntz was uni- 
ted in ma- September 1. 1865, to Miss 
Mary I". Weaver. Mrs K.K.ntz was born 
May 14. 1S47. it county, Indi- 



COMPEXDIL'M OF BIOGRAPHY. 



345 



ana. and Is the daughter of David and Har- 
riett (Whiteleather) Weaver. Her parents 
were i f German lineage and were both na- 
tives of Ohio. They were the parents of 
twelve children, four sons and eight daugh- 
ters, of whom there are seven children yet 
living. David Weaver was burn in Colum- 
biana county, Ohio, in 1822, and died in 
[894. He was a farmer and merchant. In 
religion he was a Methodist, and in politics 
was first a Whig and later a Republican. 
His wife was burn in the same count}" in 
1825. and her death occurred in 1863. Mrs. 
Koontz received a good common-school 
education and since her marriage has been 
a noble and true helpmate to her husband. 
After his marriage the subject engaged in 
farming as a renter in Columbiana county. 
Ohio, and later moved to Grant county. 
Wisconsin, where he purchased an eighty- 
acre farm which he cultivated for a period 
of two years. Disposing of his land at 
the end of that time, he returned to his na- 
tive state, where lie continued agricultural 
pursuits three years and then engaged in 
the Intel business at North Georgetown, 
where fur six years he ministered to the 
wants of the traveling public with success 
and financial profit. In the year 1879 he 
sold his hotel and moved to Jennings coun- 
ty, Indiana, where he again turned bis at- 
tention to farming, renting for a period of 
two years and then purchasing a place of 
one hundred and sixty acres, which was 
subsequently enlarged by an addition of 
sixty acres. After clearing and fitting for 
tillage 1 ne hundred acres and living on the 
place ten year- he sol,] out and. in 1SS7. 
came to Kosciusko county, where he leased 
land for one year and then bought one 
hundred and fifty acres, and later eighty 
acres more, now constituting a farm of two 



hundred and thirty acres in Jackson town- 
ship. 

.Mr. Koontz's life has been one of greai 
activitj and since coming t« 1 this county his 
industry has been rewarded by the hand- 
some competence which he now enjoys. He 
has niiade many valuable improvements on 
hi- farm, including a beautiful dwelling 
and substantial barns and outbuildings, 
while the fertility of the place has been in- 
creased to its greatest productive capacity. 
His home is one of the most beautiful and 
attractive in Jackson township and as a 
farmer he easily stands in the front rank 
of Kosciusko's most enterprising and suc- 
cessful agriculturists and stock raiser.-. 
sparing neither labor nor expense to make 
his place as nearly ideal as possible, and 
doing all within his power to raise the 
standard of agriculture in the highly fa- 
vored locality where his home is situated. 

Mr. Ko«mtz has been a lifelong Repub- 
lican and. like every good citizen, looks 
upon the ballot as one of man'- most sacred 
possessions. An active worker for the 
party, he has had no ambition in the direc- 
tion of office notwithstanding which fact 
his fellow citizens, in 1895. elected him as- 
r of Jackson township, a position he 
most faithfully and worthily filled until 
1900, inclusive. While a citizen of the 
Buckeye state he achieved considerable 
repute as a shrewd politician and for sev- 
eral years his hotel at North Georgetown 
wa- the favorite rendezvous of Si me of the 
leading party workers, among whom may 
be mentioned President McKinlev. who 
upon several occasions was his guest, lie 
wa- chairman of the Republican township 
committee when McKinlev first ran for 
congress and to him was accorded the 
honor 1 f publicly introducing that distin- 



54" 



COMPEXDIL'M OF BIOGRAPHY. 



re he 

i d in N'i rth 1 le 

\ liic'n 
r the 
national Between 

.Mr. McK ! Mr. K 

I 
and he 
- with ; that he 

one ■ f the I ' 
in tin 

Mr. K e happy faculty 

of winning and n 

ty he has 

whom hi 

ire united in 
f his integrity erling 

qualities i f manhi d, and tizen, 

keenl; 

means at his command i 
enteq ■ culated to promote the ma- 

.iinl mi ral ii mmunity, 

with both influence and 
i him ti id undei 

ime under all cir- 

uty being 
minant characteristics, while 
at the same time ho i- careful an 

fn in whom he maj differ. 

Mr. K linn believer in re- 

and it- efficacy force 

f r ' eration the 

: number of years he 
a de\ tin.' Christian church. 

active in 1 work of the 

s it li which Ik- i- identified and Ii 

• i f the g spel a- nd in 



Ian nd the seas. .M 

y and with her hu>- 
garded a- a worker ami 
pla 

th in t' amity where she li 

Mr. K the stiri 

n the march, in 
tented field <•!' in the mil car: 

.nd helped t 

ail in view I 
rtt] try ami I 

f it> instil 
ts of that dark ai I, he 

rker in the ( Irand Arm) 
e Republi 

f loyalty, patri- 
•untiy which ev« 
ird and cherish. 
Mr. and Mrs. K ntz 
with t\ Iren, the 

1 k-i 1 en I... win se birth i 
I I til day of June, 1877. I le 

t reputation, a graduate 
mmercial il North .M 

iiiu- Hundred and Fifty-seventh hid-. 
\ ■ lunteer Infantry during the hit < - 
ish-American war. In 1898 he was united 
in mar Miss Myrtli . of In- 

dianapolis, in which city he held- an 
superintendent of 
mpany. The other child died in in- 
fancy unnamed. During the county con- 
vention mention nomin 
Mr. Koonl member of the county 
council 1 f lv «ciusko county. 



ROBERT NIGHSWANDER. 

A citi/en of the United State- can \ 
r than the dis 
tion of having served the government in the 




- . — 



RESIDENCE OF ROBERT NIGHSWANDER 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



347 



memorable four years of war between the 
states. It is a sacred family inheritance of 
renown, to Lie prized like a jewel by ail 
future descendants and kept bright and un- 
tarnished by other acts of valor, patriotism 
and loyalty in the interests of free govern- 
ment. Even in this day. when there are 
many of the old soldiers living, no one can 
see one of them dressed up in his faded uni- 
form without feeling a glow of pride and 
without showing him studied deference. 
But the ranks of the old phalanx are fast 
going down before the shots- of death, and 
ere long none will be left to recount the 
actual experiences of that bloody time. In 
the meantime, while they are still with us. 
let us pay them suitable honor for their 
sacrifices, patriotism and sufferings. The 
subject of this memoir was one of the "boys 
in blue." He was horn in Franklin county. 
Pennsylvania. December 18, 1832, and is the 
son of John and Hannah (Cooper) Nigh- 
swander, the father of German and the 
mother of Irish descent. Great-grandfa- 
ther Nighswander was born in < Germany and 
emigrated to America about the year 1 781 . 
He established himself in Pennsylvania on 
a farm and there passed the remainder of 
his days. He conducted a sawmill in con- 
nection with his other duties. His wife 
bore him four sons and one daughter. The 
grandfather of the subject was born and 
reared in Pennsylvania, ami one of his sons 
was John, the father of Robert. John was 
twice married, his second wife being Miss 
Hannah Cooper. To this marriage were 
born seven boys and four girls, as follows: 
Isaac was married, but his wife is deceased, 
and he lives in Franklin county, Pennsyl- 
vania; be served four years as a private in 
the Civil war: Willis, deceased, was also .1 
21 



private in the Rebellion; Robert, subject; 
Isaiah, who served as a soldier in the Re- 
bellion and was in the Third Maryland 
Cavalry, died in Andersonville prison; John, 
who also was in the Third Maryland Cav- 
alry in the Rebellion; Mary E., deceased, 
who married Samuel Cozy; Nancy, the wife 
of Benjamin Bright, lives in Seneca coun- 
ty, Ohio: Hannah B., the wife of a Mr. 
Lawrence, a veteran of the Civil war, lives 
in Seneca count}', Ohio; Katie married and 
lived in Ohio until her death; Aaron, un- 
married, who resides in Franklin county, 
Pennsylvania. Robert Nighswander also 
served with distinction in the < ireat Re- 
bellion. In August, 1861. he eidisted in 
Company B, Fifty-fifth Ohio Volunteer In- 
fantry, under Captain S. B. Ment, and after 
a season spent in camp of instruction was 
■sent with his regiment to Virginia. Thence 
they moved to New Creek, and later, at 
Moorefield. Mr. Nighswander saw his first 
battle. He was engaged at Romney, and at 
the bloody battle of Fredericksburg, during 
the "'mud campaign," fought with great 
gallantry for two days. He went with his 
regiment through the Peninsular campaign 
and suffered intense hardships, not having 
his clothes off for five weeks and sleeping 
on his arms the whole time. He fought at 
the second battle of Bull Run, and though 
he was in the thickest of the fight, and his 
regiment lost heavily, he escaped without a 
wound. lie was at Culpeper Court House- 
also and fought bravely with his regimental 
companions. He participated in the en- 
gagements at Cedar Mountain, in the move- 
ment up the Shenandoah valley ami fought 
at Cross Keys. He was hotly engaged at 
the bloody battle of Chancellorsville, where 
"Stonewall" fackson was killed, ami at the 



34« 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



desperate and decisive battle of Gettysburg, 
after which his regiment was transferred to 

man's army and participated in the 
"march t>. the sea."' He participated before 
thi- in the assault on Lookout Mountain and 

i down i" Atlanta and thence t<> the 
!n all he participated in twent) i 
pitched battles, besides almost innumerable 
skirmishes, marches and campaigns, and 
throughout all of them showed splendid 
pluck and loyalty. Think of it. Here were 
five boys in "lie family who entered the 
Federal service at the commencement and 
1 until the end. several of whom suf- 
fered from galling wounds and one of them 
died of starvation and hardship in prison. 
Should this ii"t he called "The Soldier Fam- 
ily?"' And what a splendid inheritance t" 
hildren. How proud coming gen- 
erations will lie to narrate the gallantry and 
sufferings i f these heroic brothers. The 
subject came through the entire war without 
a serious wound. At Gettysburg eighteen 
niiiiie halls pierced his clothing until he 
looked almost like a sieve. That old uni- 
form should have been framed and placed in 

state house at Indianapolis. He now 
gets the small pension of ten dollars per 
nn mth for the disabilities contracted in the 
service. \fter serving four years he was 

rabh mustered out in the fall of [865 a1 

.land. ' 

Upon his discharge from the army Mr 
Nighswander returned t" Bloomville, Ohio, 
aid • work "ii a farm by the month 

itinued until [868, when. 1 n Sep- 
tember 5 of that year, he was united in mar- 
with Mi-- Rebecca Shock and t,. them 
1 three 1" ys and tw. 
A., the \\ iic of Thon father 

te in the Rebellion : theii 



other children are deceased. Mr-. Nigh- 
swander was born in Seneca county, Ohio, 
April -'5. 1845, and was the daughti 

and Magdalena (Shanour) Shock. 
The latter couple were the pan even 

children, t . en daughtei s 

win 'in ten are living. All are residents of 
Ohio except her sister, Mr-. Elizabeth 
ey, a resident of Ionia, Michigan, and 
Mr-. N'ighswander. Jac b Shock was born 
in Stark county, < >hio, in 1X14. and died in 
1878. lie w farmer. Magda- 

rn 1 hi a farm in Pennsyl- 
vania June _',?. 1818, and her death occurred 
August 21, 1901, at the advanced age of 
eighty-three years, one month and twenty- 
one days. She was but three years "Id when 
br< ught by her parents t" Ohio. She was 
a faithful and consistent member of the Ger- 
man Reformed church. Mr-. N'ighswander 
was reared 'and educated in her native coun- 
ty. For thirty- 1- ur years have Mr. and Mrs. 
N'ighswander traveled life"- journey t"- 

ther, sharing each other's joys and sor- 
rows. She has been a faithful wife and a 

,'ing mother and was kind and genial in 
her manner. In [898 the subject erected his 
pleasant and o mfortable residence at a 1 
of about twelve hundred dollars, a residence 
which 1- a credit t" the township. 

Mr. Xisiiswander i- an enthusiastic Re- 
publican, believing in voting the way he shot 
during the war. I le i- active and prominent 
m all local affairs, lie is a member of P 
X". 114. (i. A. R. He i- in comfortable 
cir and tin uj member ■ >f 

any church he and his g 1 wife contribute 

liberally t" all worthy movements. They 
1 their "Id age in quiet and with 
the respect 1 f every one who ha- the honor 
of their friendship. 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



349 



ROBERT M. JONTZ. 

It is interesting" to note the various ways 
by which the first settlers came from their 
Ik mies in the east to the unbroken wilds of 
the west and also how later settlers came 
out. It was a common occurrence for the 
father to come out first, walking" the whole 
■distance, selecting' his tract of government 
land, going to the nearest land office and 
paying for the same and then walking the 
■entire distance hack to his eastern home to 
get ready to move his family out. Then all 
were haded into a wagon or wagons and 
slowly driven to the wilderness home. If 
a log cabin had not been built on the first 
visit, the first thing to be done was to erect 
one and while this was being done very 
often the family lived in the covered wagon. 
Then land must be cleared before a crop of 
any sort could be raised. When the first 
■crop was harvested the family were then 
self-sustaining. The family represented by 
our subject passed through just such ex- 
periences. He was born on section 11, 
Seward township. Kosciusko county, Indi- 
ana. March 28, 1X5-'. his parents being Ja- 
cob and Catherine (Nelson) Jontz, the 
father a iming originally from Pennsyl- 
vania and being of English descent. When 
Jacob Jontz was yet a boy in Pennsylvania 
his father died and soon afterward he came 
to Ohio to live with an uncle, Michael 
Jontz. While thus engaged he grew to. 
manhood and married, his wife being the 
daughter of Robert Nelson, of Wayne 
county, Ohio. Previous to this event 
Michael Jontz had come to Kosciusko 
county. Indiana, and entered one hundred 
anil sixty acres with money furnished by 
Jacob Jontz. wdiO' had earned the same by 
w< rking by the month for Michael. In 



1851 Jacob came from Wayne county, 
Ohio, to Seward township. Kosciusko 
county, Indiana, and located on his land. 
He brought his family and few belongings 
in a wagon, the distance being about two 
hundred and fifty miles. Previous to this, 
however, he had come out and had cleared 
a small tract of the land and had erected a 
small log cabin, in which to place his fam- 
ily when they should be removed to the 
Indiana home. Upon his arrival with his 
family he began in earnest to clear (iff the 
heavy timber. In time one hundred and 
twenty acres were cleared and in 1868 a 
good frame house was built, said to- have 
been the best in the county at that time. It 
is still standing. Jacob Jontz was a man 
who attended closely to the work of his 
farm, and was quiet and unassuming in his 
habits and manner. He was thoroughly 
honest and died with the respect of all who 
knew him. The mother died in 1872. The 
father lived with his sons, Robert and 
Abraham, until his death in 1896. He was 
the father of six children, as follows: Rob- 
ert M. and Abraham, twins, born March 
28, 1852; Abraham married Miss Melissa 
Oldfather and lives in this township; 
Susan, who wedded John Haney and lives 
in Silver Lake, Indiana; Ross, who died 
when a boy; Emma, who died a young 
maiden; Lee; Ella, who became the wife of 
Reese Dillingham and is deceased. Rob- 
ert M. and his twin brother, being the old- 
est children of the family, were required to 
assume much of the responsibility of the 
parents. They assisted materially to clear 
off the forest and toi raise the crops of 
grain, receiving the meanwhile a fair edu- 
cation. In 1888 Robert Jontz married 
Mrs. Martha Maggart. widow of William 
Maggart and daughter of Lewis Cornwell, 



35° 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGK.ll'HY 



her father having been a resident of this 
county for thirty years. She «a- born ' lc- 
tober .^. 1859. 1" subject the following 
children were lx>rn: Bennie, born October 
25, 1888; Charles, born September 17. 
:i. Ix.rn February 4. 1893; 
Edna, born February 4. 1 S< > 7 : Ray, born 
December [6, 1899. When Bennie was 
l*>rn Gen. Benjamin Harrison was the can- 
didate for ]. resident, ami the boy was named 
for him. Mr. Jontz ha- followed farming 
all his life, ha- been successful and i- 1 
respected, lie i- a Republican and take- 
much interest in the affair- of his party, 
having represented hi- township in county 
M-. lie is well known ami has 
the respect of everybody. 



NORMAN Tit KER. 

This active and progressive fanner anil 
stock raiser of Lake township, Kosciusko 
county, Indiana, well deserves mention in a 
volume devoted !<■ the biographical memoirs 
1 f the prominent ami influential citizen- of 
this county. He was born in Franklin 
township August 2, [868, a -on of All>ert 
and Katie (McNeal) I ucker. who were 
irents of six children, namely: Nor- 
the subject; Charles M.; Lee; Curtis; 
Nellie; and < >ra. I< tis and Nellie 

are deceased. \lhert Tucker i- an exten- 
sive farmer and -t"ck raiser of the county 
and hi- biography will he found elsewhere 
in tin- volume. 

rman Tucker was educated in the 
comn the district and ac- 

quired an excellent education under the 
which environ the a\ - 
e exti busi- 



perations of hi- father served to 
broaden his practical views on business 
matters, and his judgment of all kini 

k wa- m't only exceptionally good, hut 
was early developed, thus quickly qualify- 
ing him for the business career in which 
he has been so successful. 

( )i: r _•-'. [897, Norman Tucker 

led t<> the marriage altar Mis- Nellie 
1 reiglebaum, a daughter of Nathaniel and 
Rosa (Bitzer) Creiglebaum, nati 
Ohio. Mrs. Tucker wa- educated in the 
common schools of her native state and is 

.Ay 1 f line attainments and presides with 
and dignity over their delightful 
home. As her maiden name indicates, 
is , f German descent. On the consumma- 
f the marriage ceremony, which was 
performed at the home "i her parent- in 
Chillicothe, Ohio, they immediately came 
to Franklin township to the home 

farm of his father, where he remained until 
1899, when he moved to hi- present farm 
of three hundred and sixty acre- located in 
1 to. 1 [ere he - farming and 

raising and i- meeting with remark- 
success. Hi- broad meadows and ex- 
tensive fields are specially well adapt. 

grazing of cattle and hoy-. He 
wax- a heavy purchaser of young cattle in 
the spring of the year, pasturing durinf 

summer and rounding them up on grain 
during the fall, thus putting them in the 
besl possible condition for market. His 
will average tw Is of cattle 

each fall, and arc shipped t< ■ such nurl • 
promises the best return-. Much <<i his 
time i- consumed in buying stock, which 
requires his absence from home. 

In politics Mr. Tucker i- a Republii 
and 1 1 tin- road has 

quired a km ' E politics in their re- 



COMTEXniUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



351 



lation to the business affairs of life that 
enables him to discuss intelligently any 
question in issue. He is a live and active 
worker in local ami county elections and 
his influence in behalf of his party i> felt 
and appreciated. Among his friends and 
neighbors it is well known he has no aspira- 
tion for political preferment, as the duties 
of office would cause a sacrifice of his busi- 
ness interests. Mr. Tucker is still a young 
man. being hut little past thirty years, and 
there are many years of usefulness in store 
for him. That he will develop into a man 
of exceptional usefulness in this section of 
northern Indiana is undoubtedly true, and 
the future for him is indeed bright. Mrs. 
Tucker is a member of the United Brethren 
church. Mr. and Mrs. Tucker are the par- 
ents of one child. Freda D.. born May 31, 
1899. She is a bright little girl, and under 
the wholesome influences of her parents. 
surrounded with all that can add to her hap- 
piness, her future is indeed promising. Mr. 
and Mrs. Tucker enjoy the friendship and 
esteem of many friends, which will con- 
stantly increase with the coming of years. 



JOHN L. ARTHUR. 

In the old countries of the world, par- 
ticularly in those governed by kings or em- 
perors, there is a sharp contrast drawn be- 
tween persons of title and the laboring 
classes. The aristocratic members of those 
countries, from time immemorial, have tried 
to make it appear that the kings or empen >rs 
ruled by divine authority, and the families 
of the nobility attempted to establish their 
own superiority river the working classes by 
claiming the same authority. As a conse- 



quence, labor was looked upon in those coun- 
tries as degrading, instead of being the no- 
blest calling to which man can turn his hand. 
In our country, on the other hand, it has 
been the aim to ennoble labor, and the re- 
sult has been to make the farmer and the 
artisan the peer of the wisest and best in our 
land. And this view is borne out by such 
men as the subject of this memoir. He was 
born in Wabash count). Indiana. January 
23. 1855. an d i s tne s< >n of Shelby and Re- 
becca (Neff) Arthur. The Arthur family 
are originally from the Old Dominion and 
are of Scotch de-cent, while the Neffs, who 
also lived in Virginia, are of German de- 
scent. While in Virginia the Arthur fam- 
ily were the owners of slaves, and Shelby 
was reared on a plantation where many of 
them were kept and owned. In his you.th he 
became familiar with the auction block from 
which the slaves were sold like cattle at so 
much per head. The Arthurs and the Xeffs 
lived not far apart in Virginia, and Shelby 
and Rebecca became acquainted in early life 
and upon reaching maturity married in that 
state in the year 1840. Shelby was edu- 
cated better than usual, as his parents gave 
him the benefit of private instruction under 
tutors. Three children were born to Shelby 
and wife in Virginia, and then the parents, 
not wishing to rear their family in contact 
with slavery, concluded to leave Virginia 
for one of the free states. Accordingly, 
they loaded all their effects needed in their 
new home and which were not sold, in two 
wagons and in 1847 started for the new- 
home in Indiana. Mr. Arthur bad been out 
prospecting in 1844, and had' bought a small 
farm in the northern part of Kosciusko 
county, but had sold the same a year later. 
The trip of the family to their new home was 



352 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRM'HY. 



made in the fall "f the year, when the roads, 
such as there were, were in very had condi- 
tion. It required five weeks to make the 
journey. The) -topped in Wabash county, 
where they bought a farm of eighty acre-. 
all covered with heavy timber. A -mall 
spot was cleared, and a rude log cabin was 
erected. In the meantime, while Mr. Arthur 
was building his log cabin, his family lodged 
with a family named Fogarty. Mr. Arthur 
owned this farm until a few year- ago, when 
he sold it and now lives in Roann lie made 
great improvements on the same, and did 
much of the clearing himself, being mate- 
rially assisted by hi- boys. \- time pro- 
gressed, he built a better house and better 
barns for his stuck. Three of their children 
were hern in Virginia: James W., Charles 
F. M. and Joseph; after they came to In- 
diana the following children were bom : 
Nancy M.. John 1... Sarah V... Julia A. and 
Rosa A. All of these children are -till liv- 
ing. James married Mi-- Mollie Prince, and 
is an attorney at law in North Manchester, 
Indiana: Charles married Mi-- Mollie E. 
Sam-el and i- the editor of the Wabash 
I ime-. of Wabash, Indiana; Joseph married 
Mi-- Kate Prince, who died in 1S74. and 
he then married Mi-- Leva Fague, and upon 
her death married Mi-- Melissa Kemper and 
lives in Siher Lake: Nancy became the wife 
of S. J. Johnson and lives in Virginia : John 
I... subject; Sarah married Arthur Ken- 
nedy and live- in Roann; Julia married 
Jacob Wagner and resides in Wabash coun- 
ty; Rosa married I'.urri- Johnson and re- 
side- in North Manchester, Indiana. 

John I.. Arthur wa- reared in Wabash 
county, "it his father's farm, lie attended 
the country schools, and finished with a 
course at the Northern Indiana Normal 



School at Valparaiso, taking the studies 
prescribed for teacher- in the commercial 
and the teacher'- courses. Thus he wa- pre- 
pared for teaching and accordingl) secured 
hi- certificate. During the winter of 1 s 7 
he taught hi- first term and afterward taught 
three others. On September 30, 1876, he 
was united in marriage with Mi-- Surfine 
llaney. who was lx.rn March 14. [856, be- 
ing a native of Wabash county. Their chil- 
dren are as follows: James C, horn Sep- 
tember 4. [883; Julia R., horn March u. 
[889; Glenn, h"in May 14. 1892; Arthur 
A., born < October 5. [893, and two that died 
in infancy. In the spring of 1N77 Mr. Ar- 
thur moved to this county. He learned the 
drug trade with Mr. 1'. J. I'.urket and John 
\ alentine and worked at the same for three 
vears. In 1880 he began to learn telegraphy 
at Silver Lake and remained there two years. 
In 1882 he wa- appointed agent at Summits- 
ville, Indiana, and remained there until 
[887. lie then wa- engaged in fitting [ 
fixtures in the fields for a time. He entered 
the office of the Big Four railroad a- hill 
clerk and in 1X90 wa- transferred to Berrien 
Center, Michigan, in [891 he wa- trans- 
ferred to Silver Lake as station agent and 
remained until December, 1900. In the 
spring oi 1901 he returned to the farm, hav- 
ing been elected trustee of Lake township. 
lie i- a Democrat and is strong in the coun- 
cils of his party. He wa- .: member of the 
school board of Silver Lake, i- a member of 
the Masonic lodge, serving as master for -i\ 
irs, represented hi- lodge in the grand 
Ige, and 1- al-o a member of Lodge No. 
570. I ( 1 1 1 F., having passed all the chair- 
in the latter. He i- one of the mosl prom- 
inent citizens of the county, and hi- name 
and honor are above qui 51 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



353 



CHRISTIAN E. FRANTZ. 

One of the oldest, most substantial and 
highly respected agriculturists of Lake 
township, Kosciusko county, Indiana, is 
Christian E. Frantz, who descends from one 
of the ante-Revolutionary families of Vir- 
ginia, of remote Dutch extraction, although 
Christian E. was born ill Clarke county. 
Ohio, January 28. 181 7. and is a son of 
Jacob and Sarah (Eversole) Frantz. The 
original Frantz family came to America in 
1727, and of its members Michael, the first 
to arrive, settled in Pennsylvania : later an- 
other of the family came over the ocean and 
settled in Virginia; from the latter it is in- 
ferred that the Indiana family has its de- 
scent. The record of descent is briefly given 
as follows : 

( 1 ) Michael Frantz was bom in Switz- 
erland, September 1, 1087, and came to 
America in the ship "Molly;' John Hodge 
son, master, from Rotterdam, arriving here 
September 30. 1727. He died in Lancaster 
county, Pennsylvania, in 1748. 

ill) Michael Frantz was born in Ger- 
many in 1725. and accompanied his father 
upon his emigration to America in 1727. 
He married Magdalena Zug, and moved to 
Botetourt county. Virginia, where his death 
occurred in 1807. Their children were 
Michael. Johannas, Abraham. (Ill) Chris- 
tian, Jacob. Daniel. Peter, David, and a 
daughter who married a Mr. Gharst. 

( III ) Christian Frantz was born about 
1700 and was united in marriage to Mary 
( rarst. He was a clergyman in the < ierman 
Baptist church and was also an agricultur- 
ist, lie came from Virginia and settled 
on a farm in Clarke county, Ohio, among 
Other early pioneers, to whom he preached 



in the German language. He died March 
6, 1850. and his wife died August 8, 1838, 
and their remains lie buried in the graveyard 
in the northeast quarter of section 7. Pike 
township, Clarke county, Ohio. They were 
the parents of the following children : ( IV ) 
Jacob, Christian, Elizabeth. Catherine, 
Mary, Magdalena, Esther, Anna and Sally. 

( IV) Jacob Frantz was born March 22, 
1784, and died December [9, 185 1. He 
was a miller in Virginia and accompanied 
his father to Ohio, where he engaged in 
farming. He married in Ohio. March 22, 
1813. Sarah Ebersole, who was born about 
1789. and died September 27, 1855. Their 
children are noted as follows: John, born 
July 18, 1815, married Susan Frantz, and 
they had the following children: Katy, 
Jacob. Mary and Sarah. ( V ) Christian E., 
the subject. Phcebe. born April 10, 1819, 
married Joel Ohmart and they have one son, 
Eli. Anna, born April 17, 1821, unmarried. 
Elizabeth, born December 7, 1825, married 
Lewis Myres and they had children, Simon, 
William, Aaron, John Ezra, Noah, Mary 
Ann. Sarah Elizabeth and Clara Idelia. 
Aaron, born April 10, 1830. married, July 
17, 1853, Mary Ryman, and their children 
are Lewis. Adam, Sarah, Elizabeth, Simeon, 
Samuel Ryman. Jacob Christian. Harrison, 
John Eli, Mary Catharine. 

(V) Christian E. Frantz was reared on 
the home farm in Ohio, and there also ac- 
quired a limited education in a subscripts n 
school. He early became acquainted with 
Miss Mary Heckman, who lived with her 
parents on a farm about three miles from the 
Frantz homestead, and this acquaintance- 
ship eventually culminated in warmer feel- 
ings, resulting in their marriage, March 7, 
1844. The parents of this lady were also 



354 



COMPENDIUM (>l : BIOGRAPHY. 



natives of Virginia, but she was born n 
Ohio, January 26, 1824, and, considering 
the limite I facilities the country af- 

1 in that early day. secured a very fair 
education. this marriage have been 

ten children, of whom eight grew to 
maturity and six still survive, whose names 
I lannah R., married to 
David Miller: Phebe F... wife of John W. 
L'lrich; ' .■ vho is married to Lizzie 

Kripe; Matthew, married to Anna I • 
Simon, married to Mary Snepp; Reuben, 
married t i\ ite Snell and living in North 
Man Indiana; Minervia. widow of 

Noah Buttenbaugh ; Martha, deceased wife 
■ f Levi VV. Witter. 

ree years alter marriage Christian E. 
Frantz and wife came to Kosciusko county, 
purchased eighty acre- in section [3, Lake 
township, and here they still make their 
home, but have since added to the farm un- 
til it now comprises two hundred and ten 
The first purchase at that time. 1S47. 
was all woodland, infested with wild ani- 
mal- nature, although game was 

ubundant. There were no roads thi 
the wilderness stretching from Clarke coun- 
ty, the new home in Kosciusko 
county. Indiana, but they managed t<> drive 
a wagon through by frequently cutting a 
way. and the journej consumed a week's 
time. 

Mr. Frantz was very hard-working, 

.er. and prospered. Lite iii the wilder- 
ness was not altogether one of toil, and there 
were periods of relaxation passed in liunt- 

r fishing and in the enjoyment of the 
various "bees," such as log-rolling, I 
raising, o rn-shucking, quilting, etc, in 
which the sparsel) settled neighborhoods all 
gladly ti'..k a pan .and greatly enjoyed them- 



As time ■ Mr. Frantz 

added to and improved his property, until 
.\ . at the ag righty-five year-, al- 

though still a worker, he i- enjoying his days 
in a fine brick 1 I is surrounded with 

all the luxuries of modern country life. Mr-. 
Frantz has been a worthy helpmate to her 
husband, and I rne her part 

in the battle of life, standing shouldei 

ulder with her husband. They have 
cured to themse mpetence of at ' 

thirty thousand dollar-, even cent of which 
:i accumulated through their own in- 
dustry ami thrift, as when they settled in 
thi- county they had nothing 11 chair- 

to >it 1 .11. 

Mr. and Mrs. Frantz have been men 
of the German Baptist church since li 
and have verj freely contributed from their 
mean- to Us, support, and there i- no family 
in Lake township more highly respected 
than their-. In politics Mr. Frantz i- a Re- 
publican, but hi- first presidential vote was 
cast for the Whig ticket, headed by William 
Henry Harrison, of "Tippecanoe and Tyler, 
fame. 



GEORGE VV. RICKEL 

Human life i- made up of two elements. 
power and form, and the proportion must 
be invariably kept if we would have it 
sweet and sound. Each <>i these element- 
in excess make- a mischief as hurtful 
w mid he it- deficiency. Everything turns 

every good quality is noxious 
unmixed, and to carry the danger to the 
edge <-i ruin nature cause- each man's 
peculiarity to superabound. One speaking 
from the standpoint of a farmer would 



couPE.xnirM of biography 



355 



adduce the learned pn fessions as examples 
of this treachery. They are nature's vic- 
tims of expression. Yon study the artist, 
the orator or the poet and find their lives 
nc more excellent than that of mechanics or 
fanners. While the farmer stands at the 
head of art as found in nature, the cithers 
get but glimpses of the delights of nature 
in its various elements and moods. The 
subject cif this sketch is one who takes de- 
light in existence. It is because he is in 
touch with the springs of life. 

George W. Rickel was born in Wayne 
county, Ohio, February 16, [838, and is the 
smi 1 i Samuel and Sarah (Mfoyer) Rickel. 
The Rickel family are of German descent 
and are natives of Pennsylvania. The fa- 
ther was burn in Bedford county, of that 
siate. .March 14, 1810. He was reared on 
a farm ami in early manhood chose farm- 
ing as his life's occupation. He had a fair 
education in both English and German. 
Mathias Rickel. the grandfather, came from 
Bedford county, Pennsylvania, t< • Wayne 
county, Ohio, when Samuel was a boy of 
six years. There Samuel grew to years of 
maturity, and. upon reaching manhood mar- 
ried .Miss Sarah Mover. Soon after their 
marriage, in 1842. they came to Kosciusko 
county and settled in Franklin township, 
where the father entered a tract of govern- 
ment land, all of which was covered with 
heavy timber. Their nearest neighbors 
were more than a mile away, the woods 
were filled with wild animals and the In- 
dians were still to be seen here. He built 
a small log cabin in the woods and into the 
same moved his family. They began the 
hard work of clearing off the big trees, ami 
eight years later built a large hewed-log 
house, which was a palace compared with 
the first rude structure. In iS<>4 he built 



a substantial frame house, and the family 
was by this time "out of the woods" and 
out nf pioneer times as well. On this farm 
Samuel and Sarah passed the remainder of 
their days. Mr. Rickel was a man of 
steady and industrious habits and his honor 
was unquestioned. He was a Democrat of 
the Jackson type, a man of linn convictions, 
ami at one time before Franklin and Seward 
townships were separated he served as 
trustee. In fact, he was one of the first to 
lill that position for either of these town- 
ships. He was the first postmaster of 
Beaver Dam, his appointment being miade 
111 [844 by President Tyler, and he served 
in that capacity fur about seventeen years. 
To the marriage of Samuel and Sarah the 
following children were born: William. 
George W., Eliza, Reason, Catherine, John, 
Mahlnii. Sarah A. and Winchester. Of 
this family three are deceased. 

George W. Rickel passed his youth like 
all boys of that period, going to the sub- 
scription schools in the winters and work- 
ing on the farm and in the forest during the 
summers. Upon reaching his majority he 
hired out to Horace Tucker and worked for 
him four and a half years. January 1, 
[863, he married Miss Mary C., daughter 
of William) and Susan Dunlap, a lady of 
rqixed Scotch and Irish descent, who was 
born April 18, 1846. She was brought 
from Ohio to Kosciuskoi county in 1854. 
Her father bought the farm where George 
W. Rickel now resides, and became a prom- 
inent and useful citizen. He served his 
township fur thirty years as justice of the 
peace, this fact showing the high esteem in 
which he was held. He was also post- 
master at Sevastopol and was a strong- 
Democrat. In his family were eleven chil- 
dren. To subject ami wife three children 



356 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



were born: OJive A., lxirn September 21, 
1865, and became the wife of Edson B. 
Sarber, the present trustee of Seward town- 
ship; Lloyd A., born Augusl u. 1N77. mar- 
ried Mis- Redie Black and resides in Frank- 
lin township, Sarali A., born Januarj 23, 
1882, is unmarried and still lives with her 
father. < hit of hi* wages and otherwise the 
subject had saved about one thousand dol- 
lars, and with it he took an interest in farm- 
ins; with Horace Tucker. In [865hebought 
the land where Sevastopol now stands and 
moved onto the same. He now owns one 
hundred and forty acres of excellent land in 
this township, and is in comfortable cir- 
cumstances Besides farming, he makes a 
specialty of fine horses. In clitics he is a 
Democrat and as such was elected in [866 
trustee of this township, and continued to 
serve acceptably for a period of fourteen 
years, later serving another term of two 
year*. He built the first brick schoolhouse 
in the township, and during his administra- 
tion built seven schoolhouses in all. lie i~ 
well known and universally respected and 
no citizen stand* higher in the estimation 
of the people. Mr. Rickel has in his posses 
si> m an 1 'Id parchment deed, dated Septem- 
ber -'. [839, and signed by President Mar- 
tin Van Buren. 



I-.I.I TURNBULL. 



One of the largest industries of the 
United States, if nut the largest, is that of 
the lumber business. When the figures are 
laid before a person it is staggering l -<■■ 
the magnitude of the trade. And the de- 
mand n the increase, because 



the population is growing and the uses 

which wind is put are ever mi the increase. 
What a mine of wealth the farmer would 
have if he could draw from the supplies of 
timber which he cut down and burned up i" 
• of the way forty, fifty and sixty 
years ago. In many "instances the timber 
wi uld he worth m< re than the land, houses 
and stock put together. I'm if the timber 
could he put hack as it was. the crops would 
he cut off, and si ■ it is better as it i-. The 
~ettler was compelled ti> destroy the timber 
1 r eKe the land would yet l>e a wilderness 
The business of the subject of this sketch re- 
quires him tn use up large quantities of 
virgin timber. lie obtains his supplies fr< m 
the remnants of the forests which mice cov- 
ered all of this land, hut his products are 
necessities and in strong demand, lie was 
born in Trumbull county, Ohio, June 9 
[849, and is the son of Robert and Mary 
(Fisher) lurnhull. The father was a na- 
tive of Ohio and was of Sc itch-Irish de- 
scent, a race that is noted for its orat 
and statesmen. The Fisher family also hail 
from the Buckeye state, and are of < iermanic 
descent, a race famous for its sturdy quali- 
ties an«l education. The parents grew up in 
Ohio and were there married. them 

were born eight children, as follows; EH, 
subject; Martha J., win. wedded Isaac 
Davis and lives in Churubusco, Indiana: 
Margaret, who married John Summers and 
resides in Churubusco: Sarah !•".. who mar- 
ried ( )scar Layman and is deceased : Annora, 
who wedded Smith Matthews and resides in 
Churubusco. Two of the children died in 
infancy. John was killed by a falling tree 
when he was about twenty years "Id. Eli 
. w up mi his father's farm and received 
in the meantime a fair education at the com- 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



157- 



mon scIk K ils. He learned the business of 
farming, but upon reaching his majority lie 
went to Wisconsin, far up in the famous 
logging regions, and became a cook in one 
of the large lumber camps of that region. 
He put in several years in that business, and 
when he came out he was skilled in the busi- 
ness of cooking and in the lumber business 
as well. In i N74 he was united in married 
with Miss Demis Nutting, of Wisconsin, 
whose parents were natives of New York, 
and to this union three children were born, 
as follows : Effa, deceased, and two that died 
in infancy. His first wife died in 1881, and 
and he later married Miss Sarah F. Reed, of 
Noble county, Indiana, and this marriage 
resulted in the birth of the following chil- 
dren: Bertha, born June 24. 1887; George, 
born June 9, 1890: Retha. born April 28, 
1894, and four others that died in early 
years. After his first marriage he resided 
in Wisconsin for seven years and was en- 
gaged in the lumber business a part of the 
time. In 1882 he came back to Churubusco 
and dealt in timber for twelve years. He 
located in Mentone in April, 1892, and 
worked for Brown 6L- Son for four years and 
then went into business for himself. He 
started a saw-mill and a boat-oar factory, 
having at that time a capital of two teams 
and fifteen dollars in cash. By judicious in- 
vestments and good business methods, he 
prospered until now he has a large trade and 
employs on an average twenty-eight men. 
to whom he pays weekly about two hundred 
and lift_\- dollars. He buys ami handles 
large quantaties of timber and ships his 
products to all quarters, his industry being 
profitable for him ami beneficial to the town. 
.Mr. Turnbull is a strong Republican and a 
self-made man in all respects, lie is one 



of the leaders of this community in educa- 
tion, morals and good citizenship generally. 
His wife is a member of the Baptist church. 



GABRIEL SWIHART. 

This venerable agriculturist is one of 
the oldest of the citizens of Lake township, 
Kosciusko county, Indiana, but was born 
in Montgomery county, Ohio, September 
13, 18 17. His parents, Jacob and Mary 
(Ault) Swihart were natives of Pennsyl- 
vania and of German desent. These parents 
were both born in Washington county, 
Pennsylvania, and were both brought to 
Ohio when young, their people settling in 
the same neighborhood in Montgomery 
county. There they grew to maturity ami mg~ 
the pioneers and in due time were united in 
marriage, the result being a family of eleven 
children, namely: Sarah, Diana, Gabriel, 
Elizabeth, Mary, Jacob. Susanna, Lydia,. 
John, Barbara and Isaac. 

Jacob Swihart was a mason by trade, 
but also carried on farming. He came to 
Kosciusko county, Indiana, in February, 
1839, and entered two hundred and forty 
acres of land, to which he afterward added 
another two hundred and forty acres. 
Gabriel Swihart came to this county with 
his parents, but in a short time returned t<> 
Ohio, wdiere he finished his studies in a com- 
mon school, and then, a few months later, 
came back to Indiana and for eleven terms 
taught school in Kosciusko county. 

In January. 1840. Mr. Swihart once- 
more returned to his native county, and was 
there married to Leah McDonald, whom he 
at once broughl t' 1 Indiana and for some- 



35* 



c OMPENDIUM OF Hl< K.RAI'llY . 



time lived .in the farm of In- step-mother, 
which farm heat first rented ami afterward 
pur It contains one hundred ami 

sixtj a ' here Mr. Swihart put up 

bin ami afterward lx.u^ht fifty acres 
re. 

In politics Mr. Swihart was tlr-t a Whig, 
luu after the old party was merged, as it 
were, int" tiie new ami vigorous Republican 
part) he affiliated with the latter. His first 
i- was for William Henry 
Harrison, the Whig leader of the famous 

in" campaign under the shibboli 
if "Tippecam * ami Tyler, t> < >." in 1841 >. the 
ticket being triumphantly successful in Mo- 
nber of that year. Mr. Swihart has him- 
self served as township trustee of Clay 
(which included Lake) township for one 
term, and was postmaster at < meida for ten 
years. I le was township clerk one term ami 
has alsi ■ served as supen is. r. 

October 28, 1896, Mrs. Leah 1 Mel ton- 
aid 1 Swihart died in the faith of the Ger- 
man Baptist church, of which church Mr. 
Swihart has been a member f>>r main years. 
She had borne her husband seven children. 
Anna, wife of Go rge Beigh, and re- 
siding in Seward township; Elizabeth, mar- 
ried to Jacob F. Cillery and living "it the 
Swihart homestead; Jacob, still single 
and making his home with his father: Mary,' 
deceased; fohn, deceased: Joseph and Diana 
(twins 1. of whom Joseph has married Miss 
Alice Rh des and I >iana is deceased. 

Gabriel Swihart. now in his eighty-fifth 
year, is remarkably hale and well preserved 
a- to ins physical appearance, and as far 
that is concerned would never he taken by 
a stranger or casual observer, not cognizant 

his advanced sixtj \< 

old. His memory is wonderful!) retentive. 



ami his mental faculties, indeed, seem to be 
in all respects unimpaired. His long life of 
Usefulness and charitable acts has won for 
him the sincere affection of aim 
man. woman and child in Lake township. 
if many of those living in townships 
ent. His early industry has resulted 
in hi- tence, and 

while he still enjoys the glow of the g 
rays of the -1111 of life that must eventually 
-it behind the horizon of the inevitable, he 
share- that enjoyment with no stint in the 
companionship of the members of his fam- 
ily and his loving friends. 



JACOB ILRIA 

The agricultural interests of Jacl 
township are abl) represented by Jao 
L'lrey. who during the greater part of the 
time since his birth, on the 28th dav of 
April. (846, has been a resident and hon- 
ored citizen of the county of Kosciusko. 
Paternally he is of German lineage, his 
great-grandfather coming from the old coun- 
try in an early d.i\ and settling in Lancaster 
county. Pennsylvania, where Isaac I drew 
the subject's grandfather, was born and 
d. When a young man Isaac Ulrej 
migrated to Montgomery county. ( mio, with 
his wife. Barbara Gripe, whom he married 
in the Keystone state, and there followed ag- 
ricultural pursuits until [836, when became 
to Kosciusko county, Indiana, settling in the 
southwestern part of Jackson township. He 

ne of the earliest pioneers of tin 
tion where he located and he continued t" 
reside on the land he purchased from the 
government until his death, on the 4th day 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



359- 



of September, [859. Among the children of 
l>aac and Barbara Ulrey was Stephen Ul- 
rey, a youth of seventeen when the family 
came to the new home in the wilds of Jack- 
son township. He remained with his father 
until reaching the age of twenty-one, when 
he entered the marriage relation with Miss 
Mary Swihart, a sister of Gabriel Swihart, 
and a member of one of the old and highly 
esteemed families of this part of the county. 
The issue of this union were the following 
children: Barbara, wife of Daniel Butter- 
baugh : Jacob S., subject of this review; 
Sarah, wife of S. J. Fisher: Alary A., wife 
of William Isenbarger; Esther, who mar- 
ried Samuel Climer; Isaac and George, the 
last two dying when young. 

Jacob S. Ulrey first saw the light of day 
in Clay township, now the township of 
Lake, and spent his childhood and youth on 
his father's farm, where he early learned 
the lessons of thrift and industry which have 
characterized his subsequent years. By rea- 
son of the death of his father, which oc- 
curred when the subject was young, he en- 
joyed but limited educational advantages, 
being obliged, as soon as old enough, to con- 
tribute his share to the maintenance of his 
mother and the children dependent upon her. 
Like a dutiful son. he gave up without mur- 
muring- any plans he may have previously 
formed for attending school, and until his 
twenty-third year farmed the home place 
and looked carefully after his mother's in- 
terests. Shortly after his marriage, in 1868, 
he ;\.m\ his wife moved to Wabash county, 
where they made their home for a period of 
eighteen years, residing during that time on 
a farm which Mr. Ulrey rented for four 
years and which subsequently came into his 
possession by purchase. The time spent in 



the county of Wabash covered the interim 
between 1871 and 1889. Mr. Ulrey in the 
latter year purchased the farm in Jackson 
township where he now lives and moved to 
the same immediately thereafter. In com- 
mon with the majority of farmers, he has 
experienced both good fortune and the op- 
pi isite. the latter consisting largely of sick- 
ness with which certain members of his 
family have been afflicted. ■ 

December 13, 1868, Mr. Ulrey and Miss 
Alary C, daughter of Abraham Rowland, 
were united in the bonds of wedlock. Seven 
children have resulted from this marriage, 
th« oldest of whom. Rosa, was born August 
2, 1869, is now the wife of Jesse I lite, and 
lives in the town oi Manchester; George, 
the second, was born April 23, 1871, mar- 
ried Mattie Grove and at this time lives in 
the state of Minnesota; Lizzie, born Feb- 
ruary 14, 1873. is the wife of Ira Grosnickle, 
< if Manchester ; Alattie, who became the wife 
of Alva Studebaker, was born June 13, 
1S74: Abraham, an employe of the Wabash 
railroad, was born on the 17th of July, 
1876: Anna, now Airs. Alva Parrott, was 
born September 15, 1879, and lives in South 
Whitley. Whitley count}' : Stephen, the 
youngest of the family, was born January 
19, 1881, and died on the 4th day of March, 
[882. Airs. Ulrey's parents were natives of 
Maryland and came to Lake township. Kos- 
ciusko count}', about the year 1846. She 
was born one year later and lias spent all 
of her life in the counties of Kosciusko and 
\\ abash. 

Air. L'lrey is a thrift}" man, honest and 
upright in all of his dealings, and is num- 
bered among the most intelligent and pro- 
gressive farmers of the township of which 
he is an honored resident. A man of earn- 



360 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



est c< nvictions, strong in his purpose to do 
the right, and ever ready to lend his aid to 
further an enterprise by which the public 
may be benefited, he has borne well his part 
in life and a large circle of friends and ac- 
quaintances h"M him in warm personal re- 
gard. He and hi- estimable wife are widely 
and favorably known throughout Kosci- 
usko and Wabash counties and their char- 
acters in all that constitute true man 
and womanhood have always been above 
criticism i r reproach. Both are highlj es- 
teemed members of the German Baptist 
church, with which body they became identi- 
fied in tlu year 1872 and since that time they 
have been endeavoring to the best of their 
abilities to live such lives a- the Master shall 
approve on the great day when all -had 

render account for the deed- done in the 
In >dv. 



SAMUEL HOFFER. 

The well known gentleman to a review 
of whose life the following lines are de- 
voted i- a native of < >hi". horn in Holmes 
count} on the 25th day of Vugust, 1846. 
American branch of the Hotter family 
had it- origin in Pennsylvania, in which 
state the original ancestors settled many 
years ago, coming to this country from > ler 
many. For generations they were tillers of 
the soil and belonged to that large and emi- 
ncnth respectable middle class to which the 
United States i- so largely indebted for its 
marvelous agricultural and industrial 
growth. 1 >n the maternal side the subject 
i- of Irish lineage. Mi- mi tlu-r- name was 
Mo,. re and she belonged to a numerous fam- 
ily that became residents of Pennsylvania 
at a ven early date. 



Mr. Hoffer's father was reared to agri- 
cultural pursuits and always followed farm- 
ing for a livelihood. His parent- mov( 
Ohio in pioneer times, locating in Holmes 
county, and he remained in that part of the 
State until [865, when he moved to K 
usko county. Indiana, and purchased two 
hundred acre- of land in the township of 
Etna. Hi- place was comparatively new at 
the time, the only improvements being 
about ten acre- of partly cleared land. Mr. 
Hoffer wa- a man of great industry and 
. . hut did not live long enough to make 
much improvement-, dying the same year of 
hi- arrival, lie reared a family of two 
and four daughters, viz: Marian, Samuel. 
Lena A.. Sarah. John and Anna. 

Samuel being the oldest son, to him fell 
the responsibility of caring for the mother 
and other children after the father's death. 
Taking charge of the farm he bent all of his 
jies in the direction of it- improvement, 
in which work he wa- assisted hy hi- young- 
er brother, who. though a youth, wa- sti 
and active for his year- and proved a valu- 
able helper. By reason of his duties as prac- 
tical head of the family, the subject was 
■ 1 liged, much to hi- regret, to forego school 
privileges, consequently his education is 
-amewhat limited. Later in life he made 
up for tin- deficiency by wide reading and 

ibservation, which, with his know 
of business and contact with the world in 
various capacities, ha- made him a very in- 
telligent and broad-minded man. S 
years after hi- father'- death hi- mother was 
united in marriage to Mr, Samuel B 
who proved to he an exception to the ma* 
ioritj of step-fathers in that the children 
were well cared for and their rights and in- 
ts respected. Young Samuel remained 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



361 



at home until his own marriage, which was 
si lemiiized in his nineteenth year with Miss 
Esther Baker, the bride being but sixteen 
years of age at the time. 

Mr. Hoffer and his young wife began 
life's struggles with little of this world's 
goods, but blessed with good health and 
animated by a determined purpose to suc- 
ceed). They resolutely faced the future and 
at once commenced laying aside a portion 
of their earnings with the object in view of 
ultimately purchasing a home of their own. 
In due time Mr. Hoffer invested in fort) 
acres of land in Etna township, which he 
soon converted into a good farm, making 
improvements at intervals as his means 
would admit. Bv industry and good man- 
agement he succeeded admirably in his un- 
dertaking and it was not long until he added 
another forty-acre tract to his original pur- 
chase, the two pieces of land comprising the 
present a r ea of the farm. As a farmer he 
has always been energetic and, possessing 
the happy faculty of always looking upon 
the bright side, has never become discour- 
aged and has rarely failed in realizing 
abundant returns from his labors. In addi- 
tion to general farming he has done much 
in the way of stock raising, having long 
made this branch of the farm yield a large 
portion of his income. Mr. Hoffer believes 
in improvement and has spared neither 
labor nor expense in supplying his place 
with substantial buildings and otherwise 
beautifying the home and adding to it- at- 
tractiveness and value. In c88l he erected a 
line barn, thirty by fifty-five feet in area and 
ci rrespondingly high, and in [890 replaced 
iiu old dwelling with a commodious modern 
residence. He has surrounded himself with 
main of the comforts and conveniences oi 



life and is now in independent circumstances 
with a sufficient competence laid by to make 
ln>. declining years free from care or anxiety. 

Mr. Hoffer occupies a prominent place 
in the esteem of the people of his commu- 
nity and is universally respected for his man- 
iy character as well as for his many deeds 
of kindness as a neighbor, friend and citi- 
zen. He has lived to a good and useful pur- 
pose and the high position he occupies in 
the community has been honestly and well 
merited. As a business man hi-- methods 
have always been correct ami fair dealing 
lias characterized all of his transactions with 
his fellow man. Personally he possesses 
those qualities calculated to inspire confi- 
dence in others, consequently is popular with 
all classes and conditions of people, hav- 
ing never lacked for warm friends when- 
ever he has needed them. In politics he is 
a supporter of the Republican party, but has 
never had the time nor the inclination to 
take a very active part in political work. 
Fraternally he belongs to the order of Mac- 
cabees, carrying in the same an ample insur- 
ance for his family in case of his death. He 
has always been a good liver and liberal 
provider and his aim has bear to make com- 
fortable and happy those dependent upon 
him, as well as to wield an influence for 
good among all with whom he comes in 
contact. 

Mr. and Airs. Hoffer have four children : 
Andrew E., born November 28, [868, mar- 
ried Eliza Hazen and lives in Etna town- 
ship; Frank J., born Augusl (8, [872, mar- 
ried Xellie Bowman and lives on the home 
farm; Oran A., born April 15. 1*74. also 
lives in the township of Etna ami i- a mar- 
ried man, his wife being formerly Mis- Ma- 
lic Sechrist; Florence X.. the youngest <•( 






lU.Ml'EXPIL'M OF BIOGKAl'UY. 



the wife of James Stackhouse, 
-tt township; her birth occurred on the 
19th of August, 1882. 



ill'.Xin S. K. B VRTHOLOMEW. 

Henr) S. K. Bartholomew, the popular 
and efficient editor and proprietor of the 
Warsaw Union, the only Democratic paper 
published in Kosciusko county. is an fndi- 
anian by birth, having first seen the lighl 
of da) in Middlebury township. Elkhart 
count} . I [e 1- of < ierman descent and traces 
his ancestrj hack to hi- great-great-grand- 
father, John Bartholomew, of Lancaster 
county, Pennsylvania, who was a Revolu- 
tionary soldier. Among the family of John 
Bartholomew was Moses Bartholomew, the 
-reat grandfather of the subject, who settled 
in Loudoun county. Virginia, where John 
Bartholomew, Jr.. the grandfather of the 
subject, was born. The last-named married 
Mi-- ko-annah Sager and subsequently re- 
Ohio, thence, in later years, to 
Michigan, where his wife died. He after- 
ward- moved to Iowa, bul later came t" 
Goshen, Indiana, where he died in [864. 
He was the father of ten children, viz: 
Christian. Moses, Lydia A., Amos, Samuel. 
Rebecca l ; ... Sarah ].. John. Abraham S. 
and I lenrv S. 

Moses Bartholomew, the father of the 

subject, was born in Union county. Ohio, 

nber 22, 1824, and removed with his 

Kalamazoo county, Michigan, in 

1847. I lis father was a 1 

ed that trade while a hoy, under his fa- 
- . gf in ll 
until 1868. In i8< 



mi ved to Elkhart county. Indiana, and 
afterward- established himself in business 
-hen. He wa- married in that county 
on the i2th day of November, 1861, to Miss 
Elizabeth Pfeiffer, who was born in Wayne 
county. Ohio, December -7. 1834, and was 
a daughter of Jacob and Mary E. ( Knapp) 

Pfeiffer. The latter couple were lwtli na- 
if Germany and emigrated to the 
United State- in 1833, having been married 
in the Fatherland some years before com- 
ing t" this country. Upon arriving in the 
new world they first -ettled in Wayne coun- 
ty, Ohio, but in [843 moved to Elkhart 
county. Indiana, where they resided until 
their death-. They were the parents of ten 
children, as follow-: Jacob, Philopene, 
Caroline, Frederick, Elizabeth, I lenrv. 
Christina, Philip ami William (twins) and 
one daughter that died in infancy unnamed. 
After the father of the subject married 
he lir-t -ettled in Middlebury township, Elk- 
hart county, this -tate. where he engaged in 

farming, hut later he moved to Goshen, 
where he engaged in the cooperage business 
for about live year-. Then he purchased an 
eighty-acre farm in Jefferson township, that 
county, onto which he moved and then 
gaged in farming until his death, which oc- 
curred on the j i-t of January, 1900. His 
wife ]. receded him to the silent world, dying 

June 29, inn< s Mi ses Bartholomew was > 
Democrat in politics, a- were hi- ancestors 
a- far hack a- known. He wa- a devout 
member of the Lutheran church, as was his 
n ife. Hi- a- est - I .utherans, 

le of them having been prominent min- 
that denomination. Hi- was the 
father of four children besides the sul 
brieflj mentioned a- follow-: X 
Inirn September 5, 1867, became the wil 




A 



Xrust^y j0 , /o, ft ajudtd!<^dujj-. 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



363 



Edward H. Gardner and resides in Elkhart 
county; Ella May, born December 30, 1869, 
is the wife of Jesse S. Cripe, and also resides 
in Elkhart county on the old Bartholomew 
homestead ; they have one child, Agnes Eliz- 
abeth, who is the only grandchild of Mr. and 
Mrs. Moses Bartholomew; Clara V. and 
Carra V, were twins and were born April 
25, [873 ; Clara V. is unmarried and resides 
on the old homestead in Elkhart county, 
while Carra V. died April 24, 1874. 

Henry S. K. Bartholomew is the eldest 
of the family and was born on the 8th of 
October, 1862. He was reared in his native 
county, the first five years of his life being 
spent in Goshen. Afterward the family re- 
moved to the farm heretofore referred to, 
where the subject received his early training 
amid the scenes of rural life. He early be- 
came acquainted with the principles of in- 
dustry, and the farm life, which afforded him 
plenty of work and an abundance of fresh 
air, gave him strength as he grew to matur- 
ity and today he is. both physically and 
mentally, a splendid representative of Indi- 
ana's manhood. He received his rudimental 
education in the district schools of his neigh- 
borhood and in the Middlebury high school, 
after which he attended the Northern Indi- 
ana Normal School at Valparaiso and Pur- 
due University at Lafayette, taking a short 
course in agriculture at the latter institution. 
When seventeen years < if age he began teach- 
ing, which occupation he followed through 
five terms, though not consecutively. Not 
liking this vocation, he again turned his at- 
tention to agriculture, in which he was en- 
gaged on the 1 'Id homestead for twelve years. 
In August, [899, he went to South Bend, 
Indiana, where he became a member oi the 



editorial staff of the South Bend Times. 
March 7, 1901, he purchased the Warsaw 
Union, taking charge of the same on the 
20th of the same month, and is now sole 
owner of that paper, which is one of the 
best newspapers, and the only Democratic 
one, published in the county, having a cir- 
culation of eighteen hundred copies. Mr. 
Bartholomew was one of the organizers of 
the first farmers' institute in Elkhart county 
and was its first president. He was con- 
nected with the institution in an official ca- 
pacity until leaving the county and was also 
a part of the time employed as an instructor 
in farmers' institutes throughout the north- 
ern portion of the state. 

Mr. Bartholomew is a member of the 
Lutheran church and is a charter member 
of the Holy Trinity English Lutheran 
church of South Bend, which he helped to 
organize. Fraternally he is a member of 
Middlebury Lodge No. 311, K. P.. and is 
a past chancellor in that lodge, having also 
represented it in the grand lodge at Indian- 
apolis. For eight years he was a member 
of Calanthe Division No. 41. U. R. K. P., 
of Goshen, but upon leaving the latter city 
took out an honorable discharge. He is a 
charter member of Warsaw Grange, P. of 
II.. and a member of Kosciusko County 
Pomona Grange and the Indiana state 
grange. He was one of the organizers of 
the Elkhart County Historical Society and 
served as its secretary for the first four 
vears of its organization, or until he left 
that county. He is also a member and 
helped to organize the Kosciusko County 
lli-torical Society. He is an uncompromis- 
ing Democrat in politics ami takes an active 
interest in the success of his party, lie has 



■2-2 






COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



spirant for public honors 
ijh his friends have endeavored man) 
lade him to allow his name to 
be presented fi r i ffice. 



PHILIP CHIVINGTON. 

The gentleman whose name introduces 
-ketch is a progressive fanner of Etna 
ship and was one of Indiana's patriotic 
the blue and fi iught the 
incline- of In- country mi many of the 
es of the South and during 
the troublous period when secession threat- 
ened the disruption of the national union. 
lie was born in Elkhart county, this state, 
mber 28, 1847, the son < f John and 
Harriet (Dickey) Chivington, native-, re- 
spectively, • f New York and Indiana. The 
father, who was 1 1 [rish descent, settled in 
the untj 1 1 Elkhart when a young man, 
and there met and married Harriet Dickey. 
who l the mother of five sons and five 

daughters, viz: Absalom, Madison, Martha. 
Sarah. Mary ].. Alnnra. Belinda and Philip, 
cf whom the first two are tun 

ifter the death of the mother of these 
Children n married Mrs. 

Elizabeth Seaman, whose maiden name was 
Dillen. 

ge of twelve years Philip Chiv- 

leprived l>y death of that best 

and most loving "t" all earthly friends, his 

mother, after which he became an inm; 

an ol - household. Reared on a 

he early learned t" perform the - 
e-t manual labor, and while -till a men 

cl by different panic- in the 
at month h wages. It was 



while thus engaged that Fort Sumter 
fired upon and the country became alarmed 
b) reason of the rapid approach of civil 
war. Catching the patriotic >pirit with 
which so many gallant young men of the 
North became imbued, he went to the town 
of Elkhart and tendered hi- services to the 
lunteer. Failing to p 
fully the required test by reason 
>. being but fifteen at the time, he 
returned home very much cast down hut 
with a determination to make a second at- 
tempt 1 favorable opp rum- 
ity presented it-elf. In due time he again 
presented himself for enlistment, this time 
with better fortune, for on August -'-'. [86.2, 
he wa- accepted anil became a membei 

npaiiv 1 >. One Hundredth Indiana Vol- 
unteer Infantry. Mustering at Indianap- 
3, the regiment proceeded to Cairo, llli- 

thence to Memphis, Tennessee, and he 
first met the encim at Jackson, in the latter 
-tate. where Mr. Chivington experienced his 
first practical knowledge of warfare. The 
campaigns ami battle- in which the ( me 
Hundredth Indiana took part constitute an 
important chapter of the history of the Re- 
bellion. Among the leading battles in which 
Mr. Chivington participated were the 

Yickshurg. Missionary 
ut Mountain, Chattan 
which, with several minor engagements, 
made up hi- first two year- of active service. 
After -pending the winter of 1863 in 
bama his command, the following spring, 
entered upon one of the bloodiest campaigns 

1 war and from that time till the 
of the struggle the subjeel saw much active 
service, being under tire almost constantly 
fi r several months in successii n. Tin 

g, i 1 addition to those already 1 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



365 



is but a partial list of battles in which he 
was engaged: Resaca, Georgia, Knoxville, 
Tennessee, Dalton, New Hope Church, Big 
Shanty, Negro Jack Creek, Chattahoochee 
River, Atlanta, Cedar Bluff, Jonesboro, 
Lovejoy Station, Griswold, Savannah, 
Branchville, Georgia, Little River, Alabama, 
Bentonville and Raleigh, North Carolina, 
besides others of which no note was taken. 
After the fall of Atlanta and the crushing 
of the Confederate forces from Georgia to 
the sea, Air. Chivington marched through 
the Carolinas to Raleigh, thence to Wash- 
ingti in, 1 ). C, where he had the honor of tak- 
ing part in the grand review at the close of 
the war. The corps to which his regiment 
belonged was commanded by the gallant 
general and patriot, John A. Logan, and it 
was his privilege to follow that great chief- 
tain on many of the bloodiest fields for 
which the Rebellion was noted. 

Mr. Chivington was discharged on the 
8th day of June. 1865, and immediately 
thereafter returned to Elkhart county, where 
for some months he worked at any honor- 
able employment which his hands found to 
■do. In 1867 he came to Kosciusko county 
and turned his attention to agricultural pur- 
suits, which he has since followed with en- 
couraging success, being now one of the 
substantial farmers and enterprising citi- 
zens of the township of Etna. Shortly after 
becoming a resident of this county he was 
united in marriage to Miss Louisa J. Felter. 
a union that resulted in the birth of four 
children: Mary R.. wife of Sol. Thomas, 
of Scott township: Charles F., who lives in 
Wisconsin; Halcie \\\. who married Emma 
Taylor, deceased: and Josephine, wife of 
Ed Taylor, a farmer of Etna, township. 
Mrs. Chivinsrton's married life was not of 



long duration, being terminated by her un- 
timely death in the winter of 1880. Subse- 
quently, March 2j, 1890, .Mr. Chivington 
married his present wife, formerly. Mrs. 
William Taylor, but whose maiden name 
was Sarah Hoffer. By her former husband 
she had four children, namely. Cora M., 
Emma S., Samuel E. and Margaret E. 

In politics Mr. Chivington has always 
affiliated with the Republican party and 
there is no man sounder in the principles and 
traditions of Republicanism than he. He 
never fails to cast his ballot and, when nec- 
essary, expresses fearlessly the well ground- 
ed opinions which he entertains. A close 
student of political questions and a wide 
reader of literature bearing upon public af- 
fairs, he is a forceful factor in the coun- 
cils of the party and as a worker has been 
influential in advancing the interests of the 
ticket in the locality where he lives. Mr. 
Chivington is a man of quiet demeanor, ab- 
solutely honest and reliable in all of his 
dealings, and possesses in a marked degree 
the esteem of the people with whom he as- 
sociates. For about twenty years be has 
been an earnest and consistent member of 
the Christian church, being familiar with its 
peculiar plea and read}' at all times to make 
any reasonable sacrifice to the end that the 
Master's kingdom may be promoted and 
mankind won to the higher life. Frater- 
rallv he belongs to Stephen Hamlin Post, 
G. A. R., of Etna Green, and on account of 
services gallantly rendered is now the re- 
cipient of a liberal pension from the govern- 
ment for the preservation of which he gave 
much of the strength and vigor of his man- 
hood. 

Mr. Chivington is essentially a man of 
the people, belonging to that large and emi- 



360 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



nentl) respectable class thai by deed- rather 
than by words give stability to the commu- 
iui_\ and d" so much to promote the ma- 
teria] interest of the country. Few men can 
boasl of a military record as replete with 
me duty faithfully and uncomplaining- 
]\ performed, while- his career in the humble 
sphere of private citizenship has been such 
as t'. recommend him to the favorable con- 
sideration of the best people of the township 
ol which he is a resident. 



B. A. THOMAS. 



Success in this life comes t" the deserv- 
It i- an axiom demonstrated by all 
human experience, that a man gets out of 
this life what he puts into it, plus a re 
able interest on the investment. The indi- 
ll who inherit- a larg< ami adds 

nothing to hi- fortune cannot lie called a 
successful man. lie that fails heir to a 
large fortune ami increases it- value i- suc- 
cessful in proportion to the amount he adds 
ti hi- possession. But the man who starts 
in the world unaided and by sheer force of 
will, controlled by correct principle-. I 
ahead and at length reaches a positi< 
honor among his fellow citizens achieves 
success such a- representatives of the two 
former classes can neither understand nor 
appreciate. I" a considerable extent the 
subject of this sketch is a creditable repre- 
itive of the class la-t named, a class 
which has furnished much of the bone and 
smew of the country and added to tl • 
liility of our government and its institutions. 

1'.. A. lib imas i- a nati\ e i if K 
county. Indiana, and son of Samuel S 



Eliza (Beckner) Thomas. The subject's 
paternal grandfather, Samuel Thomas, was 
horn in Wales of English parentage, lie 

married into the Matthew- family that 
moved to North Carolina many year- ag 
in their veins flowed the 1>I< •• «1 of a long 
lire of Scotch-Iri-h ancesti rs. In an early 
day Samuel Thomas came to America and 
-atled in North Carolina, where he became 
a well-to-do planter. By reason of his un- 
dying hatred of the institution of slavery he 
quit the South about the year [834 and 
d to Union county. Indiana. Subse- 
quently he changed his residence to the coun- 
ty of Elkhart, hut purchased land in this 
county. lie reared a family of thirteen 
children, whose name- are a- follow-; 
1 en. Ellen, Jane. Matilda. Samuel. Elkanah, 
Andrew. Benjamin, James, Dovey, Sarah, 
William and John. 

Samuel Thomas, Jr., fifth child of Sam- 
uel Thomas referred to at* ve, was reared in 
Rowan count). North Carolina, ami in 
Union and Elkhart counties, Indiana, and. 
like his ancestors for several generations he- 
fore him. became a tiller of the -oil. lie 
married, in the county of Elkhart, Eliza 
Beckner, whose parents came to Indiana in 

early day from Ohio and settled not far 
from where the Thomas family located in 
Clinton township, Elkhart county. They 
were of German descent and earned the rep- 
utation of industrious, honest ami honor- 
able people, characteristics which appear to 
have been inherited in a marked degree by 
their descendants. Samuel S. Thomas pur- 
chased eighty acre- of land in Scott 
township, Kosciusko county, from which he 
developed a good farm. He made many 
substantial improvement- on his place 
mown far and wid< 



COMPEXPIL'M OF BIOGRAPHY. 



367 



fanner and enterprising man, also as a goo 1 

citizen, who, knowing his duty, discharged 
the same regardless of fear or favor. His 
widow is still living, making her home at 
this time with her son, Solomon Thomas. 
Samuel S. and Eliza Thomas had a large 
family, t twelve in all. namely: William. 
Jacob. I'.. A., Chauncy, Dovey, Francis, Sol- 
omon, Eli, Margaret, Albert, Ellen, of 
whom .Margaret and Albert were twins. Of 
this large family that once surrounded the 
hearthstone of their parents, five have been 
■called to another life, and the others are to- 
day tilling stations of usefulness in the 
world. 

The direct subject of this review was 
born in Scott township, December 9, 185 1, 
and grew to manhood on his father's farm. 
At intervals during his minority he attended 
the public schools and at the age of twenty- 
one turned his attention to carpentrv. He 
soon became a skillful workman and fol- 
lowed the trade until his marriage, in 1880, 
after which he engaged in the pursuit of ag- 
riculture. Miss Mary C. Phares became his 
wife on April 29, 1880. She was born in 
the township of Etna, March 20, 1857. the 
daughter of Amos and Elizabeth (Minnis) 
Phares. who came to Kosciusko county 
about the year 1852 and purchased a farm 
in section i r, Etna township. 

After his marriage Mr. Thomas moved 
to a small farm of twenty acres in Scott 
township and began cultivating the land, in 
addition to which he worked at intervals at 
his trade, finding plenty of work to do in 
his neighborhood and elsewhere. His own 
place not being large enough to farm profit- 
ably, he rented ground in the vicinity ami in 
tfhis waj was enabled, with ids earnings 
from carpentering, to make substantial 



progress, accumulating within about twelve 
years sufficient means to purchase the old 
Phares homestead, which came into his pos- 
session in the fall of 1892. This farm has 
been his home since that date and under his 
successful management has been brought to 
a high state of tillage, besides containing 
some of the best improvements in the neigh- 
borhood. Mr. Thomas is a careful husband- 
man and cultivates his soil after the most ap- 
proved methods. lie works according to 
well devised plans, keeps everything on the 
premises in good condition and the general 
appearance of his home indicates order and 
good taste. His buildings are substantial 
and comfortable, the fences in first-class re- 
pair, and the golden harvests which he every 
year reaps attest the industry with which he 
prosecutes his labors. In addition to general 
farming and stock raising Mr. Thomas, 
since the year 1885, lias operated a steam 
thresher with which he does a large and 
lucrative business in his own and other com- 
munities, the enterprise proving remunera- 
tive from the beginning and furnishing no 
small part of his annual income. 

Mr. and Mrs. Thomas are the parents 
of two children, the older of whom. Gladys, 
w as born on the 19th day of September, 
t882. She was graduated from the com- 
mon schools in 1901 and is a young lady of 
good mind and much more than ordinary 
culture, highly respected in the community, 
and has before her a promising future. 
Samuel A., the second, was born March 14. 
[887, and died an untimely death on the 
nth of March, 1889. 

Mr. Thomas affiliates with the Demo- 
cratic party and for eleven years served as 
a _ t . SS(ir of Scott township. lie did not 
finish \n> lasl term, resigning the office upon 



368 



COMPE.XPIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



removal in 1892 to the township of Etna. 
Id is a zealous member of the ( ><i<l Fel- 
lows brotherhood, belonging to Etna < in 
Lodge, No. 268, and to the Rebekah degree, 
to which latter department of the order iiU 
wife is also a member. Religiously he ac- 

wledges the authority of no man-made 
creed and ha- no use for written articles of 
faith outside the word of God. lie sub- 
scribes to the plain simple teachings of the 
Christian or Disciple church, and for a num- 
ber of years has served the congregation of 
which lie is a member as deacon and assist- 
ant superintendent of the Lord's Day school. 
He lives a quiet, peaceable life, consecrated 
t' • the 9er\ ice of ( ■■ "1 and to the good of his 
fellow man. and his words ;i> well a- his 
example have inspired others t" noble deeds 
and greater activities in the work of win- 
ning men and women to the higher life, 
say that Mr. Thomas is a good man. an up- 
righl citizen and a devout Christian is 
express a fad of which his neighbors and 
many friends are fully cognizant. His aim 
has always been to do the right and it i- 
such as he that "tir country is indebted for 
the stability of its institutions and for the 
large measure of prosperity which it enjoys. 



S< ID >MON SECHRIST. 

Paternally the subject of this review is 
tided fn.m French ancestry and mater- 
nally traces his family history hack to the 
mountains and valleys of Switzerland. In 
p.11 early day his great-grandfather 'eft the 
vine-clad hills of beautiful France and. with 
1 'titer of his countrymen, came t" America 
and settled in Westmoreland county, I 
sylvai lere he reared a family and 



lived the life of a farmer. Among his de- 
scendants was a grandson, David Seohrist, 
birth occurred in Pennsylvania, 
When a young man David went to Stark 
county. Ohio, where he purchased a farm 
and became a successful tiller of the soil. 
lie married Miss Catherine Wens, whose 
ancestors came to the United States about 
the same time that the Sechrists located in 
Pennsylvania, and settled in Ohio They 
were Swiss and. like many people from the 
old W( rid. were lured to this country by the 
prospect of obtaining lands, which was an 
impossible thing to do in their native coun- 
try by reason 1 f the high price of real es- 
tate and its entailment to the wealthy and 
the nobility. 

David Sechrist remained in Ohio until 
[842, iii < October of which year he dis] 
of his interests there and moved to Marshall 
county. Indiana, where he purchased eighty 
acres of land. I le als< 1 h. rught the same num- 
ber of acres jusl across the line in the county 
of Kosciusko, and in due time cleared ami 
developed a good farm on which himself 
and wife spent remainder of their days. He 
made many substantial improvements on his-. 
and became a noted farmer and prom- 
inent citizen. Public-spirited and pn . 
sive, he to!>k a leading part in the materia! 
development of me country and for many 
years was a local politician of the old Whig 
school, afterwards transferring his alle- 
giance to the Republican party. He and 
wife weii ealous church workers ami 

tiie wholesome influence which they exerted 
in the community was largely instrun 

evating the morals of their neighbors 
and friends and leading many into God's 
v isilile kingdom. Eight S< ms and two ti- 
ters were horn to David ami Catherim 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



369 



christ, namely: Jacob, Laura. Isaiah. Sol- 
omon, David, Samuel. George, Mary. Jere- 
miah and John. 

Solomon Sechrist's birth occurred in 
Stark county. Ohio, October 22, 1833, and 
he was a lad of nine years old when the 
family moved to northern Indiana. Like 
all boys m a new and undeveloped country, 
lit was early put to work on the farm, and 
the healthful exercise of such active labor 
induced strong physical vigor, productive 
oi health, strength and long life. At the 
early age of fifteen he left home and began 
working for himself as a farm laborer at 
monthly wages, receiving for his services a 
mere pittance compared with remuneration 
such as young men of the present clay are 
paid. 

.Mr. Sechrist continued to labor by the 
mi nth until 1853. on April 5th of which 
year he was united in marriage to Miss Eliz- 
abeth Hepler. who was born in Stark coun- 
ty. Ohio, in the year 1835. Mrs. Sechrist's 
parents were natives of Pennsylvania, but 
when young migrated to Ohio, thence, in 
[838, to Kosciusko county. Indiana. Her 
lather entered land in Scott township and be- 
came one of the most progressive farmers 
of his community, accumulating land and 
other property valued at over ten thousand 
dollars. 

Mr. and Mrs. Sechrist began housekeep- 
ing on a forty-acre tract of land in Marshall 
county, which Mr. Sechrist had formerly 
purchased from the government. They con- 
tinued to live there until their house and all 
' f its contents were destroyed by fire, a loss 
which embarrassed them considerably. 
After this catastrophe Mr. Sechrist sold 
his place and bought eighty acres in Kosci- 
usko county, in addition to the cultivation 



of which he also started a general store, 
which proved a paying enterprise. After 
making some money he again disposed of 
his possessions and went to Iowa, a most 
unfortunate move, as he encountered many 
discouraging obstacles in that state and 
failed to make any of his undertakings suc- 
ceed. After spending the greater part of 
his money in several unfortunate enter- 
prises Mr. Sechrist, in 1867, returned to 
Indiana and invested the residue of his 
means in forty acres of land in Kosciusko 
county. He did not retain this place very 
long, but sold it at the first favorable op- 
portunity and purchased the same number of 
acres in Etna township, on which he has 
since resided. He now has a beautiful and 
well improved farm, the greater part under 
cultivation, and by industry and thrift has 
recovered from his former reverses and is 
now well situated as far as material things 
are concerned. 

Mr. Sechrist began life's struggle alone 
and unaided, and despite his many ups and 
downs triumphed over adverse circum- 
stances and earned not only a comfortable 
and attractive home, but also a position of 
honor in the community such as few attain. 
His intelligence and practical wisdom I ng 
ago attracted the attention of the public and 
at different times he has teen honored with 
local offices, among which were those of 
school director, supervisor and justice of 
the peace. In the last named 1 iffice he earned 
an enviable reputation on account of his fair 
and impartial rulings and the soundnes 
his judgments, many important cases hav- 
ing been tried in his court. But few appeals 
were ever taken from hi- decisions, and as 
long as he held the office litigants were per- 
fectly satisfied to have their matters ad- 



37o 



COMl'E.XDIL'M OF BIOGRAPHY. 



'. by him, and generally the wisdom of 
his decis - upheld. 

itically Mr. Sechrist li:i-~ always artil- 
iated with the Democratic party. 11< 
his first presidential ballot f< >r James Bu- 
chanan and since that time has seldom 
mi"-, n. although he i- by no 

active party worker. He 
charter member of Bremen Lodge, l. O. O. 
F., and with his wife belongs t.. the Chris- 
tian church. The family of Mr. and Mrs. 
Sechrist of five sons and three 

daughters, whose name- are a- follows: 
e, Flp, Martlia. Mary. David, 
Catherine. Ella, Elmer, Frank and Saman- 
tha. of whom Elmer and Frank are twins. 
\- a man ami citizen Mr. Sechrisl 

. esteemed in his township and few oc- 
cupj a- conspicuous a place in the confii 
of the public, lie i- a man of the p 
and a representative of the best type of 
American citizenship. Me refuses 
down li\- any adverse circumstance and. tak- 
ing an optimistic view of life, ha- made his 
presence felt fi r good wherever his lot has 
been cast. He has always Keen interested in 
every enterprise for the genera] welfare of 
the community and liberally support- every 

vement calculated t" benefit hi- fellow 

men all ng the line of moral reform. Couit- 
cous and kind to all. broad-minded in his 
view- "i men and affair-, and firm in his 
com •mpliment worthily l>e- 

Stowed t. speak of Solomon Sechrist a- an 
honorable and upright Christian gentleman. 



WILLIAM 11. BUTTERBAUGH. 

This well-known live-stock breeder and 

farmer 1- a native of Lake township. 1\ 
lisko county, Indiana, i- a -on of |< din and 



Sarah (Montel) Butter baugh, former' 
Ohio, and was born April 18, [851. His 
paternal gi nd father was a nativi 
Germany, was the first of hi- family t<> come 
to America, and on reaching this country 
located in Pennsylvania, whence, -ome year- 
later, he removed to Montgomery county, 
Ohio, where he passed the remainder of his 
iife in the honorable pursuit of agriculture. 
He left a family of four children, namely: 
ge A.. Susan, Samuel and John. 
n Butterbaugh was reared "ii hi- fa- 
ther'- farm in • >hio until he had attained a 
suitable age for entering upon an apprentice- 
ship at blacksmithing, in the meantime se- 
curing a g 1 common-school education. 

About [842 he came to Indiana and entered 
one hundred and sixty acre- 1 f wooded land 
in Kosciusko cOunty and forty acres in Wa- 
bash county, and on the Kosciusko end of 
his place erected a dwelling, and eventually 

cleared up a large part of hi- land ami de- 
veloped a tine farm. 

The Montel family came l<> Lake town- 
ship on the 18th of April. 1S44. The head 
of the family. John Montel. had a son and 
.1 daughter. The latter, named Sarah, he- 
came the wife of John Butterbaugh, and to 
this union have been born eight children, 
all of whom are now deceased, save two. 
William 11. and Mahlon L.. the latter of 
whom is married t.> Laura Buzzard and re- 
sides in Manchester. Indiana. 

William II. Butterbaugh was reared on 
the farm "ii which he still resides ami ac- 
quired a very good education in the country 
schools of the neighborhood. March 6, [884, 
he married Mi-- Viola Dirck, daughti 
Henry and Mar) 1 Lehr 1 Dirck, and born 
in ( thio November 18, 1867, her people hav- 
ime i" Kosciusko county, Indian 




RESIDENCE OF WILLIAM BUTTERBAUGH 




WILLIAM BUTTERBAUGH FAMILY GROUP 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



37i 



1869. They settled in Seward township and 
were among the mi >st respected farming 
people of this section of the county. The 
marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Butterbaugh has 
been blessed with two children, viz: Hazel 
E., born January 8, 1888, and Xellie M., 
born October 24, 1S90. Both of the little 
girls have received instruction in music and 
are to be given thorough public-school edu- 
cation. Mrs. Butterbaugh is to her husband 
a helpmate in the truest sense of the word 
and by her wise counsel and encouragement 
has done much to assist in the establishment 
of their beautiful home. 

After marriage Mr. Butterbaugh rented 
the home place and cultivated it until De- 
cember, 1888, when he purchased it and en- 
gaged in breeding choice live stock, for 
which he has acquired a splendid reputation. 
The farm comprises two hundred acres and 
that part not reserved for grazing is under 
a fine state of cultivation. The improve- 
ments are complete and substantial and all 
things about the place indicate thrift, indus- 
try and general prosperity, the property be- 
ing now estimated as worth fifteen thousand 
dollars. 

In politics Mr. Butterbaugh is a Repub- 
lican, and he has several times represented 
his township in county conventions. Mrs. 
Butterbaugh is a member of the German 
Baptist church. Mr. Butterbaugh is very 
public spirited, is in favor of the best schools 
and teachers the township can afford to sup- 
port, and is also an advocate of public im- 
provements generally, to the expenses of 
which he contributes his full share finan- 
cially. Mr. and Mrs. Butterbaugh have al- 
ways been useful members of the communitv 
in which they live, and are greatly respected 



by their numerous personal friends as well 
as by the public at large. 

The following extract in relation to the 
cieath of John Butterbaugh will be of un- 
doubted interest to the reader : 

John Butterbaugh, whose home was near Rose 
Hill, near the Wabash county line, died on Wednes- 
day, April 3, 1895, at the remarkable age of ninety- 
years. He was a pioneer of that section, and one oi 
the most highly respected men in his locality. He 
was universally esteemed by all who knew him. He 
was a kind and indulgent father, an affectionate hus- 
band and a kind friend. The poor and needy were 
always graciously remembered by this worthy man. 
His daily life was as an open volume to the people. 
His transactions in a business sense were of the most 
pronounced type of honesty. The world is bette r for 
the lives of such people. His remains were interred 
in the Frantz cemetery, Pleasant township, Wabash 
county. 



WILLIAM H. BOWMAN. 

The biographies of enterprising men, es- 
pecially of good men, are instructive as 
guides and incentives to others. The ex- 
amples they furnish of patient purpose and 
steadfast integrity strongly illustrate what 
it is in the power of each to accomplish. 
Some men belong to no exclusive class in 
life; apparently insurmountable obstacles 
have in many instances awakened their dor- 
mant faculties and served as a stimulus to 
carry them to ultimate renown. The in- 
stances of success in the face of adverse 
fate would seem almost to justify the con- 
clusion that self-reliance, with a half chance, 
can accomplish any reasonable object. The 
gentleman whose life history is herewith 

outlined is a man who has lived to g 1 

purpose and achieved a much greater degree 
1 >f success than falls to the lot of the average 
individual. By a straightforward ami com- 
mendable course he has made his way to a 



372 



counzxniru of biography 



respectable position in the business world, 
winning the hearty admiration of the people 
of his county and earning a reputation as 
an enterprising, progressive man of affairs 
which the public has not been slow t< 
nize and appreciate. 

Uaac B( uinan. grandfather of the sub- 
ject, was a native of England and was 
Quaker. He married there and shortly 
afterward brought his wife t" the United 
States, settling in Stark county, < )hi". After 
the death of his companion lie went hack to 
his native land and married her sister, later 
returning to Stark county, where he en- 
ijed in the pursuit <>i agriculture. He 
spent the remainder of his life in that coun- 
ty, reared a family of five children and died 
a number of years ago, honored and re- 
spected by all who knew him: his children's 
names are Thomas, Richard, William. Jane 
and Anne. 

The third son, William, was the father 
. i the subject of this sketch. 1 le was reared 
on the home farm in Stark county and when 
a young man t< >■ «k up the trade of a mill- 
wright, in which he acquired meat efficiency. 
1 le f. id. wed his trade fi ir a number of y» 
in connection with the manufacture of lum- 
ber, meeting with good success in l«>th 
cations and acquiring at one time a fortune 
estimated at fifty thousand dollars. Being 
liberal man and easily influenced by the im 

tunities of others, he was induced t<> go 

urit) i"r a number of parties, several 
whom proved unfaithful t. their written 
E him to pa\ 

in. ney. In this way lie lost much of his 
wealth, but in no wise dis rouraged, he rallied 
from the disaster to some extent and subse- 
quently accumulated a comfortable compe- 
tence. Mr. Bowman erected a saw-mill and 



afterward a grist-mill at ( )r\ ille Wayne 
county. Ohio, which he operated with 
success and profit and later built i ne of the 
largest flouring-miUs in that county, which 
d for mam years a monument ti > his 
ability as a mechanic and skillful machinist. 
In the fall of [856 he disposed of his inter- 
ests in ( )hio and moved to Kosciusko count) . 
Indiana, locating at Etna Green, where he 
built a saw -mill. 'Phis was one of the best 
mills in this part of the state and during the 
eighteen succeeding yeais Mr. Bowman 

operated it with such success as I greatly 
retrieve the fortune which he had formerly 
lost. IK- was a man of enterprise, fruitful 
in e.\|>edieiits and rarely failed in any of his 
undertakings. He became the possessor ■ I 
a tine property in this county and for \< 
was one of tlu- recognized Republican lead- 
ers in bis township, having been a prominent 
local politician, but never an office seeker • r 
aspirant for public distinction. He cast his 
tirst vote for lien. William Henry Han 

g as the.. Id Whig party lasted was 
one of its most earnest supporters. When 
tiie Republican party came into existence be 
a' once espoused its principles and lias con- 
tinued an ardent advocate of the same as to 
the present time. 

William I low man is a sincere Christian 
d has demonstrated by his works the sin- 
cerity ( f his religious profession. He be- 
longs to what is known as the Christian or 
Disciple church and while living in Ohio 
built at his own expense a. beautiful house 
of worship in the t. wn of < >rville. lie re- 
1 eated this commendable act at Etna Green. 
After coming to K< seiusk.. c unty. he e 
liberally of his means 1, - and be- 

ent enterprises and man) poor p< 
have had reason to call d. wn heaven's 1 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



37J 



ings upon him for his generous help in their 
tunes of need. Fraternally he is a member 
of the Masonic brotherho< <1, having been 
identified with the order for man}- years. 
He has lived a long- and useful life and now 
in his declining years can look hack over i 
career unmarred by anything calculated to 
cast discredit upon his name, while the fu- 
ture has nothing which he need fear. Will- 
iam Bowman has been twice married, his 
first wife dying at the age of about fifty- 
five years. Subsequently he took a second 
companion who is deceased, after thirteen 
years of married life. He is the father of 
eight children by his first wife: Helen. 
Emily, William H.. Charles E., James. Alice. 
Ida and Eva. He is now eighty-five years 
of age and a resident of Kosciusko county. 

William H. Bowman, whose name 
serves as the caption of this article, was 
born in Portage county. Ohio, on the 12th 
day of August, 1S45. He grew up an in- 
creasing helpfulness to his parents and spent 
a number of years in the public schools, ac- 
quiring a fair knowledge of the branches 
constituting the curriculum. That which 
was much more important than book learn- 
ing was the real essence of self reliance with 
which he early became imbued; this, with a 
course of laborious thought which he has 
never ceased and a practical acquaintance 
with business in its varied forms, the ability 
U make the best of circumstances and to 
create opportunities where they do not exist, 
constitute an education of much more worth 
and farther reaching in its effects than the 
intellectual training be received while under 
the direction of instructors in the county 
schools. 

When about fourteen years old Mr. Bow- 
man began firing in his father's mill and in 



this and various other capacities was em- 
ployed 1 when the ominous signs of the great 
impending struggle between the it irthern 
anil southern states became apparent. 
Young Bowman watched with intense inter- 
est the trend of events during that exciting 
period and when the war finally broke out 
was one of the first young men of his town- 
ship to tender his services to the country. 
On the 1st day of June, 1862. at the age of 
sixteen years, he enlisted in the Fifteenth 
Indiana Battery and shortly thereafter took 
part in the action near Harper's Ferry- 
where he was made a prisoner. After being- 
held by the enemy a little over one day he 
was paroled, after which he was sent to Chi- 
cago where he remained until the following 
October, when, with a number of others, he 
was taken to Indianapolis and exchanged. 
Mr. Bowman's next military experience 
was the pursuit of the rebel General' 
Morgan, whom he assisted to capture, after 
which he proceeded with his command to 
Tennessee and other states, taking part in 
some of the most celebrated campaigns of 
the war and participating in twenty-eight 
engagements, the one at Nashville being his 
last battle of note. After forcing the rebel 
General Hood to retreat to South Columbia 
the 'battery to which the subject belonged 
was transferred to the Twenty-fifth Army 
Cor] is, and went via Washington t. > Golds- 
boro. North Carolina, where it joined the 
army under General Sherman. They were 
here when the welcome news came of the 
surrender of General Lee. and also, five 
five days later when the sad tidings was 
received of the assassination of Presi- 
dent Lincoln. He served his country 
faithfully for a period of three years and 
one month and at the close of the Strug- 



274 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAI'IIY . 



gle was mustered out at Indianapolis, his 
discharge bearing date of June 30, 1865. 
His record as a >< •]< licr is without a Haw and 
In- career from the time he entered the army 
until the cessation of hostilities is replete 
with duty bravely and gallantly performed. 

Returning home, Mr. Bowman again 
entered his father's emplo) and continued 
with him in the lumber business until the 
year [871. Meantime, in [868, he chose a 
wile in the person of Mi-- Mary Makin, 
whose parents came t" tlii- county from 
Pennsylvania in an early day. Mr-. Bow- 
man died February 14. [895, and about one 
later the subject married Mr-. Ilattie 
C01 k. a union blessed with one child, Daisy, 
wlin was born on the 9th day ■>!' December 
1897. 

In the year 1S-1 Mr. Bowman engaged 
in agriculture and has since devoted the 
greater part of hi- attention to that pursuit. 
lie ha- "lie of the best ami most highly im- 
proved farms in Etna township, consisting 
of "lie hundred and sevent) acre- of fertile 
land, nearly all under cultivation. His home 
is a model of neatness and comfort, contain- 
irerything calculated to make rural life 
mt and desirable, the dwelling being 
commodious and well furnished and the 
other buildings substantia] and in first-class 
repair, lie could at any time get seventy- 
five dollars an acre for hi- place, hut has no 
de-ire t" -ell. being independently situated 
with a fortune at his command representing 
twenty thousand dollar-. 

Mr. Bowman ha- made considerable 
money by. dealing in live stock, and a- a 
rai-er of tine cattle, hogs and horses has no 
superi ir in the count) of Kosciusko. The 
farm is admirably situated for this branch 



taining tine pasturage and an 

abundance of water and other accessories 
calculated to make stock raising both agree- 
able and profitable. Since 1889 Mr. Bow- 
man has n,,t been active in the work of the 
farm, being in a situation to let others do 
the work while he manages the place a 
vith his ether interes 

Mr. Bowman is one of the leading men 
of his township ami has always been lirst 

1 foremost in all enterprises for its im- 
provement and prosperity. Public spirited 
and wide awake, he is by nature a leader of 
men and to a large extent a moulder of 
opinion, especially as concerns the vari 
business enterprises in which he has been en- 

jjed. He is a Republican in politics and 
has done effective service for his part;, 
a member of the comity central commit! 
which position he filled for several years t., 
the satisfaction of all concerned. Frater- 
nally he is a member of Post No. 169, G. A. 
R., Wigwam No. 16, I. < >. R. M.. belong- 
ing also t" Council X". 1. of the last-named 

ler, Lodge X". 303, [. O. 0. F., Encamp- 
ment No. 15X. I 1 1. ( ) I'., the latter at Bour- 
bon, and he and hi- wife belong ti I idge 
X". 50, Rebekahs, auxiliary to the < Kid Fel- 
lows. He has held a number of prominent 
official positions in these orders, and has 
served as a representative to the grand lodge 
; I »dd Fellows. 

Mr. Bowman belongs to nature's arist,,c- 
racy and is a horn nobleman. He has digni- 
his every station in life with a charm 
that has constantly added to his personal 
worth and has discharged the duties of citi- 
zenship with the earnestness and loyalty 
characteristic of the true American. His 
popularity extends wherever he is known. 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



375- 



his probity is recognized by his fellow man 
and his sterling character both as a citizen 
and soldier has won him the lasting regard 
oi the people of his township and county. 



WILLIAM E. BAKER. 

The respect which should always be ac- 
corded the brave suns of the north who 
left homes and the peaceful pursuits of civil 
life to give their services, and their lives if 
need be, to preserve the integrity of the 
American Union is certainly due the gentle- 
man to a brief review of whose life the fol- 
lowing lines are devoted. He proved his 
love and loyalty to the government on the 
long and tiresome marches in all kinds of 
situations, exposed to summer's withering 
heat and winter's freezing cold, on the lonely 
picket line a target for the missile of the un- 
seen foe, on the tented field and amid the 
liame ami smoke of battle, where the rattle 
of the musketry mingled with the terrible 
concussion of the bursting shell and the deep 
diapason of the cannon's roar, made up the 
sublime but awful chorus of death. All 
honor to the heroes of 1861-5. To them the 
country is under a debt of gratitude which it 
cannot pay, and in centuries vet to be poster- 
ity will commemorate their chivalry in fit- 
ting eulogy and tell their knightly deeds in 
Story and in song. To the once large, but 
now rapidly diminishing, army that fol- 
lowed "( )ld Glory" on main- bloody fields in 
the sunny South, crushed the armed hosts 
of treason and re-established upon a firm 
and enduring foundation the beloved gov- 
ernment of our fathers, the subject of this 
sketch belonged. Like thousands of com- 



rades equally as brave and patriotic as him- 
self, he did his duty nobly and well and re- 
tired from the service with a record un- 
spotted by a, single unsoldierly act. 

William E. Baker is a representative of 
one of the sturdy pioneer families of Mar- 
shall county, Indiana, but since young man- 
hood has been a resident of the county of 
Kosciusko. His paternal ancestors were 
German people and the family was repre- 
sented in Pennsylvania at a very early period 
in the history of that commonwealth. Will- 
iam E. Baker, the subject's father, was born 
in that state, but when a boy accompanied 
his parents to Portage county, Ohio, where 
he met and married Miss Nancy Clay, whose 
people were natives of Massachusetts. They 
settled in Portage county many years ago 
and their descendants are still living in vari- 
ous parts of Ohio, Indiana and other states 
of the middle west. In 1850 William E. 
Baker and family moved by wagon to Mar- 
shall county, Indiana, and settled on forty 
acres of woodland at a place known in local 
annals as "Bloody Corners." A small log 
cabin was erected and after much hard and 
consecutive labor the place was cleared and 
fitted for tillage. Mr. Baker continued to 
live at the "Corners" until 1859, when he 
sold the farm and purchased an eighty-acre 
ti act further north, in Etna township, Kos- 
ciusko county, all of which was in. its natural 
state of primitive wildness when he took 
possession. Here he again addressed him- 
self to the laborious task of felling timber 
and removing stumps, and other hard work 
required to bring the virgin soil to a state 
lit for cultivation. Industry and hard toil 
finally wrought wonders, and in due time 
the wilderness gave place to well-cultivated 
fields and a comfortable home occupied the 



376 



inMi'EXDICM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



t where years before st I the rude v 

warn of the painted savage. Mr. Baker be- 
came a successful fanner and a- a man and 
citizen ranked with the best people of the 
community in which he lived. He died < I 
tober 15. [878, but his good wife, who 
proved a courageous and uncomplaining 
helpmate, is -u\\ living at a ripe old age. 
Mr. and Mrs. 1 taker had three children, 
William I'... of this review, Esther, wife of 

nuel Hoffer, of Etna township, and El- 
mer R., who married Mary Ruby and also 
resides in the township "f Etna. 

William E. Baker is a native of Portage 
county, < >hi". and first saw the light of day 
on the 8th day of November, 1844. I le was 
seven years 1 1" age when the family came 
to Indiana and when old enough was pu1 
work in tlie woods, where he soon became an 
experienced axman. His early educational 
advantages were supplied in the indifferent 
schools which then obtained and there he 
only attended a couple of months of the 
winter season. While still a boy in hi* 
'teens, lie developed a strong physique and. 
being the oldest son, to him fell much of the 
labor required to clear the farm and I 
after it- cultivation. It was while thus en- 
gaged that the country became overshadow- 
ed by the rapidly approaching war cloud 
and it was only his immature age that kept 
him from responding t<> the first call for 
volunteers. On the 4th daj of August, 
iNf>_\ when only seventeen years old, he en- 
listed in Company F, Seventy- fourth Indi- 
ana Volunteer Infantry, into which he was 
mustered at Indianapolis, after which the 
regiment proceeded to Louisville, Kentucky. 
Mr. Baker first met the enemies of his 

intry at Perrysville. Kentucky, where a 
blood v battle was fought in October, t8( 



The next note was the ter- 

rible fight at Chickamauga, after which he 
participated in a number of battles, includ- 
tmong •■titers. Chickamauga and the 
various actions in the vicinity of that city. 
The Seventy-fourth Indiana was in the 
Second Brigade, Third Division, Fourt< 
Army Corps, that took such a brave and gal- 
lant part in the Atlanta campaign, and later 
marched with Sherman t>> the sea. Mr. 
Baker participated in the nd fall of 

Atlanta and the several noted bat! 
ing up t- the reduction of that Confederate 
stronghold. In addition to taking part in 
the great march to the Atlantic, he was pres- 
ent at Savannah when that city surrendered 
after a sturdy and bloody resistance. From 
Savannah his command marched thi 
to the Carolinas, met and routed the enemy 
at Bentonville, the last battle of the Rebel- 
lion, ami then proceeded t" Washington 
City in time to take part in the grand review 
at the close of the war. Returning to Indi- 
anapolis. Mr. Baker received his discharge 
June 9, [865, and immediately thereafter 
made his way home, where he was joyfully 
received by his family and many friends. 
During his long and active service he was 
ever read) for duty, passed through the 
many trying scenes of his military experi- 
uninjured and never spent an hour in 
the hospital on account of ill-health. Two 
events in connection with his military ex- 
periences are indelibly impressed upon his 
memory, the surrender of General Lee's 
army and the assassination of President 
I .incoln. 

()n the 28th of December, [865, Mr. 
Baker was united in man Mis. Ma- 

riah Hoffer, daughter of \ndrew and Mar- 
garet (Moore) Hoffer. natives of Pennsvl- 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



377 



vania. who came to Kosciusko in the early 
part .if the year in which their (laughter he- 
came Airs. Baker. After his marriage Air. 
Baker, in partnership with his brother-in- 
law, bought a tract of land about a half 
mile south of where he now lives and on that 
place he and his wife began housekeeping. 
He lived there until 1876, when he sold his 
interest in the farm and purchased his pres- 
ent home in Etna township. 

Mr. Baker's place was largely wood- 
land when he moved to it, but by industry 
and thrift he has since removed the forest 
growth, brought the soil to a high state of 
cultivation and now has a beautiful home 
well supplied with the comforts and con- 
veniences of life. He has always heen a hard 
working man and his present possessions 
have resulted directly from honest toil and 
good management. 

Mr. Baker is a stanch adherent of the 
Republican party and uncompromising in 
the advocacy of his opinions. He is an earn- 
est worker and at every election may lie 
found at the polls laboring zealously to pro- 
mote the interests of the cause by rallying 
the doubtful and striving by strong logical 
argument to convince some members of the 
opposition of the error of his political opin- 
ions. Fraternally he is an enthusiastic Odd 
Fellow, belonging to Lodge No. 268. He 
holds membership with Etna Green Lodge, 
in which he has tilled all the chairs, and in 
1879 he was honored by being chosen a rep- 
resentative to the grand lodge; he has also 
tilled every important official position in the 
encampment, of which he is a charter mem- 
ber. He served for twelve years as financial 
secretar) of the order in Etna Green and :it 
the present time is a member of its hoard of 
trustees. 



Mr. Baker is a man of str< ng a mic- 
tions, ever ready to maintain the soundness 
of his opinions on any subject, hut is by no 
means unreasonable in his views, accord- 
ing every man the same rights which he 
claims for himself. Among his fellow citi- 
zens of Etna township he is highly regarded 
and his life has heen singularly free from 
faults. Brave and daring on the field of 
battle, he is kind and courteous in the sphere 
of private citizenship and all who knew him 
speak in high terms of his many excellent 
qualities and praise him for his beneficial in- 
fluence in the community. He is energetic 
and progressive in all affairs affecting the 
general good and is destined to be remem- 
bered as one of Kosciusko county's gallant 
and patriotic sons and a citizen in whom 
the people of Etna township will continue 
to take a goodly degree of pride. 



CALVIN X. TOHX. 



One of the wide-awake and enterprising 
young fanners of Jackson township, Kos- 
ciusco countw Indiana, and a representative 
of the township's prosperity, is Cab'in X. 
John, who was born in Jackson township. 
Huntington county. Indiana. November 19. 
1858. 

David John, grandfather of Calvin X., 
was a native of Wales, kingdom of Great 
Britain, and was a comparatively young 
man when he came to the United States and 
hrst located in Pennsylvania; from that 
state he removed to < >hio and a few years 
later came to Indiana and lived in Wayne 
county for a while, thence removing to 
Huntington county, this state. He was a 



37« 



COMPENDIUM OF BUh.RAl'HY. 



forkmaker and wagonmaker by trade and 
his death occurred in Wabash county, this 
state. 

I )a\ id M. J( 'lin. 5< >n of I )a\ i<l above men- 
tioned, was born in Ohio October _'<>. 1821, 
and lived on a farm until apprenticed t" a 
nmaker. < )n the 7th of February, 
la- married Mi-- Susan < Kerhul-ler 
ilM.rn Augusl -■'>. 1823), which union has 
resulted in the birth "t eight children, \i/ : 
Oliver, Jacob W., Sarah Ann. Catherine. 
Lewis A., David, Thomas and Calvin X. 
Of the>e children the following facts are 
noted : < Oliver married Sarah Zeht and they 
became the parents of the following chil- 
dren : Edwin i- deceased : Jennie became the 
wile of Rufus Langsden and the mother of 

four children; Charles married tiara 

and by her ha- two children: Ella is the wife 

of Abraham Landis; Webster is den 

Jacob W . i- an ex-soldier and ex-county 

urer of Huntington county, lie has 

twice married, first t" Amanda Xent 

ami, second, t" Rohanna Zent. By his first 

wife he became the father of four children, 

named as follows: William married Ella 

Jackson and they have one child. Russell; 

eased; Frank; Edna married a 

Mr. Geedy and i- the mother of one child, 

John. Sarah Ann became the wife of Le 

Myers and to them were born the following 

children: Ida. deceased; Calvin, dece 

Daisy, deceased; Jennie became the wife of 

Alva Henderson and the) have two children. 

Ruth and Russell; Clarence married Rosa 

Mower, deceased, and thev had one child. 

■ .1 : Mate married t. "'. 

Frank. Thomas married Alice Swi- 

hart and to them were born three children: 

Edith, deceased; Mabel, the wife 1 f Frank 



Dunbar: and Lewis. David M. John died 
en the 26th of March. 1861. 

Ivin X. John was a -mall boy when 
In- father died, and his mother was after- 
ward married t<> Stephen ('. L'lrich. who. 
when the subject was seven year- ..Id. 
brought him to Jackson township, K 
usko county, this tnd settled on a 

farm, on which young Calvin wa- reared un- 
til he wa- eighteen and up to that aye at- 
tended school. He then worked out at farm 
labor by the daj or month until his mar- 
December 1. 1S7S. f. Miss Lettie L'l- 
rich. daughter of Samuel S. and I'luebe 
I Miller) l'lrich and who had been a school- 
mate of Mr. John. This marriage ha- been 
ed by three children, namely: Ethel 
I'... born January 14. 1NN1. who was grad- 
uated from the high school in X'orth Man- 
chester in [899, and i- now teaching in dis- 
trict No. 5, Jackson town-hip; Minnie 1!.. 
birn Inly <.. [883, is a graduate from the 
common schools and i- now in her third 
year in the high school at X'orth Manches- 
ter: Albert X., born May 6, [885, a grad- 
uate of the common schools, is also in his 
third year in the same high school. 

Calvin X. John, after hi- main 
worked for some time for hi- father-in-law 
and then purchased ami moved upon an 
eighty-acre farm, to which he has since 
added forty acres, which he ha- improved in 
tnd shown himself to l*.- a ca- 
llable and wide-awake agriculturist. This 
farm, on which he has continually resided, 
with the exception of three years since he 
ed on it. is now considered one of the 
f it- dimensions in the town-hip. Dur- 
e interim referred to he had cl 
of a farm be ' hi- father-in-law. 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



379 



Mr. John is a stalwart Republican and 
has several times represented his party in 
us county conventions. He is a member of 
the Progressive Brethren church, v hile his 
wife is a member of the German Baptist 
church, both of which societies they aid lib- 
erally in a financial way, and in the work of 
which both take an active and effective part. 
Mr. John believes in guarding against the 
possibility of future ill fortune or calamity. 
and carries a twelve-hundred-dollar policy 
in the Union Central Life Insurance Com- 
pany. He has made hosts of friends in 
Jackson township and he and family stand 
very high in the esteem of its social circles 
as well as in that of the general public. 

As a matter of undoubted interest in this 
connection the biographer here inserts the 
following data concerning the ancestry of 
Mrs. John : 

Richard Gordon, the great-grandfather 
of Mrs. John, was born in 1774 and died 
December 19, 1S57. He married Miss Anna 
Garst, who was born August 2, 17S5. and 
to them were burn the following children: 
James. John. Andrew, all deceased, Letty 
( the grandmother of Airs. John, who mar- 
ried a Mr. Minnich. later Lewis Miller, 
and still later Jesse Myers), Katherine 
1 Mrs. Leffel I. Mazy 1 Mrs. Keplinger), De- 
lilah (Mrs. Barrett), Anna (Mrs. Fogle), 
Frederick (married a Miss Fedds), Giles, 
Sarah (Mrs. Barratt), Mary (Mrs. Dona- 
van). David, Richard. William. George and 
Liza. The latter died at the age of seven- 
teen years ami excepting her all were mar- 
ried. 

Letty Gordon (now deceased) married 
first a Mr. Minnich and after his death she 
married Lewis Miller, and still later became 
the wife .if Jesse Myers. She had no chii- 

23 



dren by either Mr. Minnich or Mr. Myers, 
Lew is Miller was a native of Pike township, 
Clark county, Ohio, and came to this coun- 
ty September 17. 1847, settling near section 
11. To his union with Letty Gordon were 
burn the following children : Andrew (de- 
ceased), Rebecca, Giles, Catharine (Mrs. 
Daniel Mishler, reference to whom is made 
below), Anna (Mrs. Heckman), Phcebe 
(who married Samuel S. Clrich and is the 
mother of Mrs. John). Mazy (deceased), 
Mary (deceased), Richard (who married 
Lavina Redeye), Julian (deceased), An- 
thony (deceased), Sallie (married Lyman 
\\ ilson Robinson and has one child. Albert I. 
Gilford (now deceased, married Lou Rob- 
inson and bad by her two children, Nora 
and Everett ). Aaron t married a Miss Day ). 
Of these children, Giles Miller married Lu- 
cinda Leffel and they had the following 
children: Jennie (married Henry Ilinkle 
and they have three children. Grace, > 1© irgie 
and Meoma), George (married Altie Vance 
and upon her death was again married), 
Alice, William (married a Miss Butter- 
baugh), Mary and a twin, the latter dying 
in infancy, Charles and Esther. 

The paternal grandfather of Mrs. John 
was John S. L'lrich, now deceased, who was 
twice married, first to Esther Swihart, and, 
second, to Susan (Swihart) Knoop. By his 
first marriage he was the father of the fol- 
lowing children: Samuel S. is mentioned 
more fully below, Mary (married I!. EC. 
\\e>t and had one son., Willie, now de- 
ceased), Jacob (married Frances Baer and 
became the father of the following children : 
Sarah, who married Daniel Filer, Charles. 
Gilford, John Calvin, who married Lillie 
Moorhart, Reuben. Susan and Gertrude), 
Aaron, Jonathan 1 married Lydia Wilson 



38o 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



and has the f< lh wing children: Carl, ( Ir- 
ville, Lee, deceased, and Fanny), Esther 

»ed i. Samuel 
S., mentioned above, was born September 

4. i *.}.}. and died January _• i . [893, < >n the 

f May. 1857, lie was married to Phoebe 

er, who was born July 17. 1835, and 

died July 5, 1897. By this union were born 

children. Lettie and Albert. Sami 
Ulrich lived for a year on his father's farm 
and then, in [858, bought a tract 
acres in section 15. Jackson township. This 

was all \\ led land, there being nol 

a building sit. While clearing this 

land iie was at the same tin jed i'l 

ol, which occupation he 

his health permitted. I le 
rmed the duties of trustee and later 
1. » >k an active pan in the building 
X". 7 ami the German Baptist church 
his home. Of the latter society he and his 
wife were faithful and active members from 

• 1 their marriage until their d< 
( >f them a friem ling once 

>aid: "1 have known Mr. and Mrs. Ulrich 
icv fort, nd have fi >und 

them to he uprig tnd charitable, 

ever and afflii 

equently Samuel S. Ulrich 1 
eight , which lie sold to C. X. John, 

ami then bought an tract 

This tract 
wned by I ich John and 

Albert I'.. Ulrich. the last , pro- 

r in the University 

B) his marriage with Susan (Swi- 
hart 1 Knoop Mr. Ulrich was the fat' 
the following children: Gilford m 
Mate I-'.. Blue and they have twi 

i and Frank) and Anna (marriei 
Harle\ and; three children, Arthur, 



■ at ' Herbert). By her former mar- 
dr. Swihart Mrs. Ulrich was the 
mother of the following children: I 
(married Ed Holderman and had children, 
who married Carrie Lester and has 
two children. Mar 
who married \V. II. Howe, Adah. (. 

married Ri is Mid Her- 

bert 1 . d), Allan 1 d< 

Elizabeth (married Thomas Wantz and has 
the following children: Mamie, who mar- 
ried Wylie Phillips and has three chil 
Charles. Gerald and X'oia. Rufus, who mar- 
ried Blanche \\ inel and has one child. I 

Xancy. w h. 'married Anson Elliott and 
child, Burson, Charles, Flon 
Ri iy, H mond and Mar,. 

The first • the Mishler family 

of whom the biographer has any record is 
I ■ Mishler. lie married Sarah Smith 
and a brief r< ; their children 

. 1 1 Mary Ann. who died in 
married John \V. Miller and they had the 
following children: Samuel 1'. (married 
Rachel Heckman and. had five children. Al- 
bert, who married A' who 
Miss Id Resin, who mar- 
Miss < allie, win. married 
a Miss Burwell), Hannah (deceased). Levi 
(married Anna Ulrich. daughter of I 
Ulrich, and they have tl 1 chil- 

wh. w as the 
nd 1 if Rett I 1 liram, who mar- 

rey, dauj X. iah l 

■i and Meh in), I liram i mar- 
Miss RI ised, b) whom 
he had a d.v the wife of 
Prof. 1 I'Duddle. and upon her death he mar- 
Vancy VVertemberg), Vir. n (married 
Martha Huffman and has two children. Mil- 
ton and (."oral. Man 1 married I'r 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



38i 



L'lrich, by whom she had three children, 
c.ne deceased, Hiram, who married Densey 
N T agle, and Joe, and upon the death of her 
first husband married Isaac Ulrich, the son 
of John J. Ulrich). Lizzie (married [oseph 
L'lrich, son of Joseph Ulrich, and thev have 
three children, Ira 1).. deceased, Altie and 
Anna), fohn E. (married Angeline Westen- 
berger), Sarah (deceased), Ira (married 
Lizzie Swartz and they have two children, 
Dorence and Floyd). (j).Lydia died in 
(890, (3) Christiana married Jacob Seas 
and the_\' have the following children : An- 
drew (deceased), Susan (married Lee Bu- 
nt). John, Joseph, Jacob, Lulie, Hettie 
: deceased), Allie (deceased), Katie (mar- 
1 Air. Conway). (4) Daniel married 
Catherine .Miller and they became the par- 
ents of the following children: Noah (de- 
ceased), Alary Lettie (deceased), Henry 
(deceased), Phebe Ann (married Lewis 
Bayman and by him is the mother of the 
following children: A child that died in in- 
... Maud, deceased, Roy, Lettie. Alfred 
and Earl), Lewis (married Barbara Arnot 
and they had the following children : 1 larley, 
Sarah. Ruth, deceased, and a child deceased 
m infancy). George 1 married first I'riscilla 
Parks, by whom he has one child, Amos, 
and for his second wife married Lizzie 
Horning), Aaron (married Ella Kyler and 
has one daughter, Ethel), John (married 
Sarah Haines and by her has two children, 
Pearl and Roy, the latter deceased), Liza 
(deceased), Esta (deceased) and Ira 
( married Lillie Circle and by her has the 
wing children: May. Lee. Blanche, 
Merdina, a child that died in infancy, and 
Clem I. (5) John married first Sarah War- 
ner, who died without issue, and he after- 
ward married Nancy 1 'riser, by win mi he 



became the father of the following children: 
Alary (married Harvey Serber and ha: one 
child. Martha), Daniel (married Jennie 
Connel and they have two children, Lloyd 
and Trude), David (married Sue .Martin). 
Lydia (married Albert Walters), Henry 
(married a Aliss Smith, by whom he be- 
came the father of five children), Anna 
(married Jacob Karns and thev have chil- 
dren 1. Jacob (married Piney Nichols and 
they had one child, now deceased 1. (6) 
Jacob married Margaret (Peggy) Warner. 
(7) Adam married for his first wife Cath- 
arine Cripe. the daughter of Jacob Cripe, 
and by her had the following children : 
Alary (deceased), one that died unnamed. 
Flora (married David Shively), Emma 
(married Christ Miller). After the death 
of Ins first wife Adam Mishler married 
Catharine Ulrich. (8) Solomon and (9) 
Betsey are deceased. 

The descendants of Aaron and Anna 
Heckman are as follows: ( 1 ) Ann Maria 
married Benjamin B. Stead, now deceased. 
and the}" became the parents of the follow- 
ing children: Clarence. Colvin, Arthur. 
Annie and Lettie. ( 2 ) David Lewis mar- 
ried Mary — . and they became the 

parents - of the following children: Emma 
( married Edward Brubaker and by him had 
two children, Otis and Roy), Carrie. Ollie 
and Pearl. (3) Mary Etta married Thom- 
as C. Lucas and they had the following 
children: Efrie, Hope, Nora and Orville. 

(4) George married Annie — . (5) 

Rebecca F. became the wife of Henry D. 
Heistand and they are the parents of these 
children: Alelvin Harvey ('married Doris 
Heistand), Albert Roy, Carl Ritt and Frank 
Mayo. (6) Richard V. married Sarah J. 
. and the\' became the parents of 






COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



the following children : St i Maud (mar- 
ried Abe Xicl laudius May and Guj 

\. married Man 

and tin child. Alma 

Pink. (8) Simon P. married Elvie 



and they have two children. Ima and Paul, 
ira M. became the v\ ife of I 
nd the mi ith< ild, Naoma 

As a matter of un t lie 

struct from the 1 
• nia I 1 It-raid, ol (01, 

is here appended. It h the 

Albert B. Ulrich to the chair 
in the University of Si uthei 
fi r: 

i 

■ 
- 

win .111 U 

1 i P Jenkins, now phj 
and mai 
which havi 

where. Chief among thi 
much valu 
in that il 

In gathering il iklet, 

Prof< ssor Uli 

fish. 
■ l'lrich has studied 
. 

■ 

Holl, M 
i a his time I i turn 

entered tl 3 truc- 



lli 

- 

four years I 

- 

- 

I 

ulty. 



FRANCIS M. SHIPLEY. 

It ■ meet an er — 

<"'iic who came here in the commencement 
when tl ation was quick- 

est and the mind being formed — and learn 
from hi> li|>- of the trials which were en- 
dured for the sake of the happy homes 
which now dot the county of Kosciusko. 
Such a man i> the subject of this sketch. 
All "f his earliest impressions were gained 

in the w Is of the pioneer period and he 

The i > i > - 
were happy. It is singular how < 
a person can adapt himself to any surround- 
md derive c< mfort therefrom. And 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



3*3 



vet it fails to be at all singular when ac- 
count is taken of the selfish desire to be 
comfortable. If we have enough to eat and 
enough to wear and a little ahead and an 
outlook for some good books, we can man- 
age to worry along and derive considerable 
satisfaction out of life. So the old settler 
was happy, as every one will emphatically 
tell yen. So says the subject of this sketch. 
He was born in Knox county, Ohio, April 
ii', [839, and is a son of Reuben P. and 
Margaret (Popham) Shipley. The Ship 
ley- came from Maryland where the family 
had settled many years before. Grandfa- 
ther Shipley was born in Maryland, and 
iva a tidier in the war of [812. He was 
• if English descent, and in early manhood 
married Miss Rebecca Phillips, to this mar- 
riage fourteen children being born. Reuben 
P., father of the subject, was the oldest of 
this family. He grew to maturity in Knox 
county, Ohio, receiving a limited education 
in the pioneer schools, and married Miss 
Popham in 1836 in that county. To their 
marriage eight children were born, as fol- 
lows: Francis M., Man I'.. Elias, John 
\Y.. Slier, nan. Rebecca J.. Worthingtou ami 
Minerva A. Of these John \\ '.. Sherman 
and Mar) P. are deceased. Reuben P. 
moved to Kosciusko county in the year 
1844, where the grandfathei Popham had 
entered a considerable tract of laud from the 
rnment some five or six years previi us 
lv. On this land five or six acres were 
1 when the Shipleys arrived. The 
country was very new then, there being wild 
animals in the w 01 ds and the Indians were 
still here in abundance, The land was cov 
ered with dense forests which had in be 
cleared "IT before crops could he raised. 
Great-grandfather Popham possessed some 



striking characteristics. He had come to 
America as a British soldier during the war 
of the Revolution, and when the war ended 
had concluded to remain here. Grandfa- 
ther Popham had educated himself for the 
ministry of the Methodist Episcopal church. 
He was a natural orator, and at his death 
was credited with having married more 
couples than any other man of his time. He 
and his buys cleared up the old farm. The 
Shipleys secured land in this county, and on 
the farm of his father Francis M. was 
reared. He was required to learn the busi- 
ness of farming at an early age and in the 
winters was sent a considerable distance to 
the pioneer schools. In [858 he was united 
in marriage with Miss Isabella Clark and 
to this marriage four children were born, as 
fo'lL ws : Charles \\\. born July 30, 1859. 
married Miss Mary S. Jemison and they 
now live in Lake township: Ewin E., born 
March 2. 1861, educated himself well and 
for many years was a teacher in the com- 
mon 5chi ols of tlie county; he married Miss 
Emma Blond and iww resides m Montague 
county, Texas; Mary A., born December 
10. 1863, married J. M. Chambers and lives 
in Mo county, Texas, her husl 

being an attorney at law ; William 1'.. born 
January 5, 1865, wedded Mi-^ Mary J. Mc- 
( ,1 ad) . and lives 1 m the farm w ilh In 
The first wif« of Francis M. Shi 
having died, he married Mrs. Philena A. 
Strode mi December (8. [884, and the issue 
of tins marriage was 1 ne n de- 

ceased. Mr. Shiple) 1 in active life, 

lie was tor several ye; eneral lumber 
agenl for the Singer Manitfacturii ; 
pain-, and was three years with the Birdsell 
Manufacturing Company, of Smith Bend. 
IK is the owner of two hundred and fifty- 



3'4 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



four client land and mal 

iltj of raising ck. 1 le kee] 

hand thoroughbred ini] > rted French Perch- 
eron I and ships many cattle 

of the- liner grades. He is a keen bus 
man, a fluent talker and a very capable 
er and financier, lie i- a Democrat, 
but h; ne wild on the subject 

of politics, a- too many men have. He 1- 
ughly n self- 

made, able from an intellectual stand] 
and would make an excellent executive of- 
ficer, wherever such qualities are required. 
i the fact that Mr. Shipley's great- 
er was a soldier in the war of the 
Revolution, hi- descendants are now entitled 
to membership in that greatest of American 
the S '1 laughters of the 

American Revolution. The subject and his 

both fund i >i travel and - 
and have just returned from a long trip t' 
I [i iwever, they are 
tisfied with the i 'Id 1 1 

-ire to 



<>k \ TUCKER. 



ere i- a great deal in being horn un- 
der —one that watches and 
guards off the nd folly that overtake 
so main men. ["he father anil the 
mother that are able to nil' their 
child) : us — the 

: any fate and make the mi >sl 
of the world — will see their children g 

maturity with excellent habits 
iilendid principh - e them hi 

exemplary citizen this 



brief notice was fortunate in having 
and clean a father and so sweet a mother. 
lught from the -tart the duti< 
nary instruction, hut the I 
er duties which all owe t 

iety. The result ha- him 

nd it- i" ilities 

and to tit him for upright and 
citizen-hip. lie wa- horn in Franklin town- 
ship, this county, March •;. and >s 
consequently very young in citizenship. He 

upon his father's immense > 
and from his earliest years the sight of 

of cattle, sheep, hogs and hors 
daily occurrence. Youthful experiences 

and accordingly ti- 
nt' the farm thus taught to him from infancy 
found a secure lodgment in his understand- 

\. • young man could have a 
equipment for the duties of the farm than he 

>und jui 
in- father and there were tin herds 

and immense fie] grain. In 

addition to all this he wa- given a g 
cation and in every way tilted lture 

life upon the farm. Atiol 
1 a splendid womai re his 

and thus equipp 
gan tiie I life on his own account. 

Their marriage occurred ' 
Mr- I ucker was lw>rr. 

'rvil .and Mary 
(Turner) Sarher. She v 
farm in Mar-hall county. Indiana, and was 
well educated in her maidenhood. In March. 

i couple moved upon 
farm jj. Franklin 

where lie i- just beginning the tn-'. 

I le i- broad and i 
minded, and is t Republican in p 



COMPEXPICM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



Both he and his good wife are prepared for 
life, with all its beauty and its responsi- 
bilities. 



SIDNEY T. MOORE. 

Among- the tanner? and representative 
men of Etna township. Kosciusko county, 
deserving of especial mention is the well- 
known and highly esteemed gentleman 
whose name initiates this article. Air. 
Moore's ancestral history is traceable to 
Ireland. His grandfather, John Moore, was 
born in Dublin. Ireland, in 1762. He emi- 
grated to the United States in 1780, settling 
in Franklin county. Pennsylvania, and there. 
in 1788, was married to Jane McCurdy. To 
this union were born ten children, three 
oys and seven girls, all of whom grew to 
mature years. In .1831 John Moore moved 
to Ohio and settled in Summit county, where 
his death occurred in 1842, at the age of 
eighty years. John Moore, the subject'? fa- 
ther, was also a native of the Emerald Isle 
and in his youth came with his parents to 
the L'nited Slate-, settling in Summit coun- 
ty. Oiiio, where he subsequently met Miss 
Elizabeth White, who in due time became 
his wife. The Whites were among the early 
settler? of the above c amty and appear to 
have been substantial and well-to-do people. 
('■rand father Zeabth White was born in 
tge county, Ohio, November is. 1700. 
lie was married in February. [823, to Sarah 
Rodenbaugh, a union which was blessed bj 
the birth of four children, one son and three 
daughters, lie went to California in 1841) 
and lo?t his life there by an accident in a 
mine. He was a quiet, unassuming man. 
was a go d citizen and was well liked by all 



who knew him. For several years after his 
marriage John Moore followed agricultural 
pursuits in the county of Summit, but later. 
about 1864, migrated to Indiana and lo- 
cated m Marshal] county, where be spent 
the remainder of bis days as an humble, in- 
dustrious husbandman, dying a- a g od old 
age. Seven children constituted tbe family 
of John ami Elizabeth 1 White 1 Moore, 
namely: James. Sarah. Nelson, Sidney, 
Jane, Ida and William. 

The birth of Sidney T. Moore occurred 
in Summit county, Ohio, on the 19th day 
of March. 1849. From hi- youth be be- 
came accustomed to the manifold duties of 
the farm, and of winter seasons he attended 
the district schools until he obtained a good 
practical education, the best, in fact, that the 
times and circumstances could afford. Un- 
til his twenty-first year he remained on the 
home farm, assisting his parents and prov- 
ing a valuable assistant in running the 
place and contributing to the support of his 
parents and the brothers and sisters younger 
than himself. On attaining his majority he 
began farming for himself, though ?ti!l 
making his home under the parental roof, 
and it was not until his marriage, at the 
age <>f twenty-nine, that he severed the ties 
that bound him to the family circle. Mr. 
Moore's marriage was solemnized with 
Mi-- Eliza J. Munch, whose parents were 
natives of Obi" and among the first perma- 
nent settlers within the present limit- of 
Franklin township. Subsequently they 
moved to Marshall o unty, where tbe youth- 
ful years of Mr?. M ore were -pent and in 

ommon scl I- of which she received a 

fair English educatii >n. 

During the six ing his mar- 

riage Mr. Moore cultivated his father'- place 






CUMPIiXnil'M OF BIOGRAPHY. 



as a renter, but in [885 moved from Mar- 
shall county to a forty-acre farm in Etna 
township, which was purchased a 
time prior to his taking p From 

that time to the present he has mack many 
valuable improvements, 1» 
fitting the land for ti" 1 1 he now 

"\\n- the best and most hif 

tivated farm- 1 f its size in tl 1 ip, it 

comprising one hundred and 1 He 

■ e up* n his fields and by 
tudying the adaptability of t! ■ 

has brought his place tip 
pacity, ■ 
failii abundant returns for the 

to his chosen calling. 
Mr. M ted in n 

lied the 

actii 'it 1 f 
ned, having -till some time 
nent in the matter 
kiv >\\ letlg 
lit him 

tch, and thus fully 

■ 

duty in a manner 
that won 
Tippi iip. Mai inty. Mr. 

church, oi which denomin and wife 

heen membei number 

lie 1 

lier of 01 
est and must impi rtant cl: 
at the present tin , ler in tin 

n to which the family he; 
Mr. Moore is a man of quiet, 
manly demeanor, highlj esteemed b) his 



bors and fellow citizens of the com- 
munity, and • • occupies a more con- 
spicui lis place in the minds and hearts of 
the people by whom he is known. His pri- 

haracter is above criticism and he has 
always aimed to keep his name and reputa- 
tted. His has been an earnest 
life, fraught with much that tends to benefit 
h\< kind and his career in the humble sphere 
of private citizenship has added to the char- 
acter and stability of the community in 
which he li 

en children have bless 
of Sidne; i Louisa Moore, namely: 

in, Ervii r. John, \". »ra. Laura 

and Sanford. 



DAVID MILLER. 



The subject tch, wh 

■ I* the leading farmei meii 

. and fi f fifty-f 

maintain* 

nt farm in I ' >f his 

family history the biographi 

a : 
;iK of .\ I which ■ 

■ oun- 
ty, Pennsylva ' the Warm 

maternally, were 
nty, that 

horn in the formi ty and in young 

manhood went to Montgomery county. 

ibout the 

■ ih Warner, who with her 
ted thither fi 




RESIDENCE OF DAVID MILLER 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



387 



state. When Samuel Miller arrived in Ohio 
he was a well-nigh penniless young man. 
but, endowed with a generous supply of 
what the world calls pluck, he was not long 
in getting a good start, going in debt for 
a small piece of land which he improved and 
in tine time disposed of at a liberal figure. 
With the proceeds he purchased a farm, of 
one hundred and sixty acres, partly im- 
proved, anil continued to reside Upon the 
same until 1X48. the land meanwhile in- 
creasing greatly in value with the growch 
and development of the country. Imbued 
with the belief that northern Indiana of 
j'ered better opportunities for agriculture 
than his adopted -tate. and learning that 
land in any of a halt-dozen counties could 
be obtained at reasonable prices. Mr. Miller, 
in the spring <>t" 1848, disposed of bis farm 
in Ohio, and. moving to the county of Kos 
ciusko, Indiana, purchased two hundred and 
forty acres in Jackson township, the greater 
part of the place being as nature had made 
it. This land he cleared and improved and 
later bought a three-hundred-and-twenty- 
acre tract, having realized sufficient money 
from the sali of his I Ihio farm to pay cash 
1 of land thus far purchased in 
•unty, w ith a go >dly balance 
left. lie was a man of great energy and 
industry and in time became cue of the mosl 
: - farmers of Jackson town 
one of its most enterprising and highh 
respected citizens. With his own hands be 
cleared and titled for cultivation seventy-five 
E land, besides making many valuable 
improvements on his place in the w; 
building fence-, brii .inn ti a slate 

iif tillage unsurpassed bj that of am- other 
place in the township of Jackson, lie was 
•ne 1 if the original member- of the German 



Baptist church in the township and remained 
faithful to it> teachings until summoned 
from the church militant to the church 
triumphant. His was a useful life, fraught 
with great good to humanity, and his death, 
which occurred in the year 1855. was greatly 
deplored in the community. His wife, also 
an earnest and pious communicant of the 
same religious body to which he belonged, 
and a woman of sterling worth, survived 
until 1882, when she too was called to the 
other life. 

Of the twelve children burn to Samuel 
and Elizabeth Miller, but three are living at 
the present time, namely: Aaron, David 
and Margaret. Aaron married Rebekah 
Miller and is now a retired farmer, living 
in Colorad >; Margaret, the wife of Henry 
Ci Ipetzer, lives in this township, where her 
husband is engaged in agricultural pursuits. 
The following are the name of the deceased 
member- of the family: John, Susan, 
Henry, Man*. Catherine. Sarah. Elizabeth. 
Anna and Samuel. 

David Miller, born May 27. 1841, in 
Montgomery county. Ohio, was seven years 
old when his parent- mi \ ed ti 1 the new home 
in Indiana. Reared mi the home farm. 
where since 1S48 his life has 1 it, his 

early exp'. like those of the majority 

mntry lads, were a round of honesl toil. 
devoid of any striking incident. With 
strong arms and ready will, be lx>re hi- part 
in clearing the place and ■ easons 

ded tin- district school nut far from his 
home, obtaining 1>\ close application, the 
best education which the means at band af- 

ed. After his father'- death he 
tinned to live at home and when twenty- 
one years of age took charge of the farm, to 
which he brought a bride in [866 in the per- 






'PEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



Rebekah Frantz, dauj 
Christian : Mary (Heckman) Frantz. 

Hi> marriage, which 
ruary 8, of the above year, has been bl< 
with five children, the following of whom 
arc living: KIIi>. born June _\ 1868, mar- 
ried Anna M - in Wabash 

. Minerva, who was bom 
July [3, 1873. 1- the wife of Perry Heeter, 
of J: iwnship; Mary E., born Au- 

gust 1 j. 1879. lives at home, as Laura, 

who first saw the light of day on the 1 ~ 1 1 1 
day of June, 1882. 

As already stated. .Mr. Miller took 
charge of the homestead on attaining his 
majority and since that time the place 

sion. As a tanner he 
has lew superiors, and his 

In une i- conceded to l>e one of the best and 

desirable in a township where 1 ■■ 
tul and . ire the rule. In 

e building 
which hi« father had and which 

served the family many y< 

by the present hand- 
some nmodious two-story hrick edi- 

!pv thin 
conta ted at . 

of ovi y-five hundred dollars. In the 

built :i ' n, which with 

1 in 1883, entail- 
I iter he ]>ut u| 
splendid ham which now E e farm, a 

buildi six by forty feet in 

w ith basement - and all 1 

me of tl ' and most 

tures of the kind in the I 
ship 

For a number of years past, in addil 
il fanning. Mr. Mi 

ntion to ck, in the 



E 

man. scarcely twenty- 
bought and sold horses, maki 
money, and today it is doubtful if th< 
better judge of horseflesh or a more judi- 

s buyer in this part of Indiana. YYI 
dealing quite extensively in horsi 

- considerable attention to 
and sheep, making a specialty of the tiner 
breeds, from the sale of which he 

\ year a large part of hi- income. In 
the management of his farm Mr. Mi 
ere • care and believing th 

culture, when compared with other voca- 
tions, i> one of the truly dignifie 
useful callings, takes great pride in his work 
and spares no pains t>. make his pi 
tractive. to the eye. B) reason of a - 
illness in 1895, which left his bodily 
considerably weakened, he now 

managing 
larger portion of his kind and confining his 
attention to his Mock inti gen- 

ht of the farm. 
lly Mr. Miller votes the Re] 
lican ticket, bul 

intt upon which I 

it parth 

ar, he h connect) 

I iptist church and at th 
enl time is a trustee of 
shiping in Jackson townshi] 
meml the family ah this 

church and at 

- communicants. 
O much cannot be said of Mr. M 

r and citizen. X< 
■ than he in public esteem: all who 
know him him for his enter] 

- far as known, his 



COMPENDIUM OP BIOGRAPHY. 



389 



integrity has been maintained inviolate and 

no one has ever called in question his good 
name. A good man. always striving by 
word and deed to make the world better, and 
by his wholesome moral influences exerting 
a silent hut potent power in the community 
— such has been and is the reputation of 
David Miller. 



ALLEN BYBEE. 



Previous to the Civil war it was a com- 
mon occurrence to meet in the North fam- 
ilies which had formerly lived in the South 
and had owned slaves. Upon questioning 
them it was discovered in almost all in- 
stances that they had left the South to get 
away from the influence of the institution 
of slavery. It was thought that the influ- 
ence of slavery upon children would he bad, 
and so hundreds of families left the slave 
states for the free states, where their chil- 
dren could be free from the contaminating 
effects. That was the reason which influ- 
enced the ancestors of the subject of this 
sketch to leave the South and settle in the 
North. About four generations ago Sher- 
rod Bybee left England, his native country, 
and emigrated to America, settling in Flu- 
vanna county. Virginia, it being said, also, 
that two of his brothers settled there with 
him. He married there a lady of excellent 
familj and to them were horn four children : 
John. William, Elizabeth ami Sherrod, Jr. 
John was reared upon his father's planta- 
tion and the little negroes were hi- daily 
companions. lie was given excellent ad- 
vantages and received a good education and 
upon reaching manho, d married Mi>- Cath 



erine Green, by whom he had fifteen chil- 
dren: Joseph, Washington, George, Pleas- 
ant, Millie. Catherine, John, Nathan, Sam- 
uel, James, Maria, Rebecca, Wesley and two 
others. John, the father, while he was a 
slaveholder, hecame convinced as to the 
wrong of that institution, whereupon he 
liberated all he had and started for the free 
states. He came with his family by wagon 
to Fayette county, Ohio, m [823, ami there 
purchased a tract of land and began to clear 
the same. He was a man of excellent qual- 
ities, and had served in the war of 181 2. 
He had previously had considerable experi- 
ence in dealing in live stock and in trading 
generally, and he thereupon began to buy 
large herds of hogs and horses and drive 
them across the country to the markets of 
the East. His judgment was excellent and 
he soon became wealthy. He went into the 
packing business and put down immense 
quantities of pork in barrels and shipped the 
same down the rivers to New ( hdeans. He 
lost one large cargo thus sent down, which 
caused him to curtail his enterprise in the 
field. Connected with this enterprise, he be- 
came involved in a duel with his commis- 
sion man and the death of the latter had 
much to do with his stopping that branch 
of his trade. After thai event he took what 
he had left and came to Indiana, locating 
in Franklin township, this county, in [838. 
He entered a quarter-section in section 7. 
and began to clear off the timber and till 
the soil. There he lived until his death, in 
r868, at the age of seventy-five years. 
Washington Bybee grew up on his father's 
farm in Fayette county, Ohio, and reo 
a limited school education, hut full experi- 
ence in the rearing and shipment of 
a- the method- then existed, lie married 



39° 



iPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



in thai state, and. with the assistance of his 
father, ?, r "t a start and bought a farm. In 
company with his uncle, he e and mar- 

k in the Eastern markets, particu- 
larly in Richmond. Virginia. By the time 
he was re; ndiana lie had ac- 

cumulated about hundred dollar-. 

a sum sufficient him an excellent 

start in thi- state. He arrived here in 1N41 
and bought a ' land and went t" work 

elop it. He traded and trafficked and 

■mi. and later 

after the country 

had e .it of it- first wildness. He 

bj honor- 
able bably 
thirty thousand cl um and a 

implishment for that day. He was 
a man of hig 

perfect ii ted by all 

who knew him. His promim ! rec- 

"iit i 

(lnri: 11 that di 

him. Mien, his son. fil 

His 
1, \llen. Mary, 

Allen. M 

ight the pet]. . 

■ 

inan- 
1 le met and married M 
\ 1 .ram. a disl I S 

Grant, ai 

ii in all it- fury. True to tl 



stinct- "i* his ancestry against slavery, he 
was in full sympathy with the efforts of Mr. 
Lincoln u> crush the Rebellion, and slavery 
at the same time if necessan to save the 
Union. He and his brother Levi enl 

mpany 1 ty-fourth Indiana In- 

fantry, were mustered in at Fort \Vayn< 
to the field at once. They wen 

the Army of the Cumberland and 
-aw active and bloody service from that 
time forward. They fought at Perryville, 
Chickamauga 1 where Levi gave up hi- life 
f«.r hi- country in the thickest of the bal 
Chatt ssion Ridgi I . • k"iit 

Mountain, all the battles of the Atlanta cam- 

for one hundred and five days, tl 
with Sherman in his famous march to the 
They then marched up through the 
Caroli rhting in nun 

and pitched b all of which tin 

icquitted himself with di-; 
gallantry, thence at the the war 

Washington, where, in sight of the 
the army ami th< ment, the 

rand parade wa- held, down Pel 

uniforms that 
with b'ulli w ith flaunting 

ttered by tin 

mn-!. 

He passed through the war u I an I 

h 
month. At tl »umed 

farming and -i..ck ra irticularl 

latter, and continued the same with _ 

\ Inch time hi 
e. H is 
R59 n rried Eunice 
in Ment. 'lie: Mary, born in 

\ \ Lattimer, a hardware mer- 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



39i 



chant, and is deceased; Cora, who is an 
artist, born in (866, married Lorin D. Alan- 
waring, who is president of the Farmers' 
Hank 1 if Menti me: Addison L., born in 1875, 
married Bessie Wertenberger and lives in 
Franklin township; one that died in in- 
fancy. In [893 Mr. Bybee's wife died, and 
he married Mrs. Martha Herendeen, daugh- 
ter nt Thomas Ball. Mr. Bybee now owns 
four hundred and sixty-five acres of land 
and is in excellent financial condition. He 
is assistant cashier in the Farmers' Bank 
and owns a block of its stock. He is a 
stanch Republican and has ever been one ot 
the strongest factors for advancement in the 
county. He is a splendid example of the 
clean and reputable American citizen. Mrs. 
Bybee is vice-president and treasurer of the 
Willing Workers society of the Methodist 
Episcopal church and is an active and ef- 
ficient worker. In her youth she received a 

g 1 education and prior to her marriage 

was a teacher in the public schools of Kosci- 
usko county. Two events in the military 
career of Mr. Bybee are inerfaceably fixed 
upon his memory, the surrender of the rebel 
army under ( General Lee, April 9, [865, and 
the assassination of President Lincoln, rive 
day- later. At that time the subject was 
at Hully Springs, about twelve miles from 
Raleigh, North Carolina. 



WILLIAM ISENBARGER. 

One great exemplification of the fact 

that wealth attends upon industry and that 
comfort is a close follower in the wake of 
thrift i- shown in the life career of the Stfb- 
ject 1 if thi> -ketch. 



William l-enharger. son of John and. 
Susan (Shaffer) tsenbarger, was born in 
Clark county, Ohio. October 25, 1845, an '' 1 
is of Virginia descent, his grandfather. 
Henry tsenbarger, having emigrated from 
the 1)1,1 Dominion t<> the Buckeye state in 
[833, and made settlement in Clark coun- 
ty. Henry Isenharger was a poor farmer, 
and his children had early to aid in the sup- 
port of the family, and of these children 
there were six, viz: John, Jacob, George, 
Samuel, Lydia and Sarah. 

John tsenbarger early went out to work- 
in order to earn something to aid in the sup- 
port of the family and when he had reached 
his majority found himself nearly destitute 
even of clothing. When twenty-one years 
old, however, he began to hoard his money. 
and when he had accumulated two hundred 
and forty dollars in gold and silver coin he 
started on foot from ("lark count), Ohio. 
for Jay county. Indiana, whence he went to 
Fort Wayne in order to enter land in 1838. 
While on the road the weight of his cash 
began to fatigue him. and he handed it over 
to a stranger on horseback to /carry for him. 
People in those days, it will he seen, could 
trust each other. Arrived at Fort Wayne, 
he entered one hundred and sixty acres in 
Indiana, hut continued to live on rented land 
in Clark county. Ohio, until 1841, when he 
married Susanna Shaffer. He continued to 
iive < 'it rented land until [850, when he came 
in a wagi in fn >m Clark o unity. Ohii 1. ti 1 1\< «- 
ciusko county, Indiana, and was a week on 
the journey, arriving about midsummer, and 
was thus favored with propitious weather 
on his trip through the dense forests. His 
farm comprised eighty acres half a mile 
west of Rose Hill, to which he later added 
until he owned one hundred and four acre-. 



392 



COMPESDIL'M OF BiOGR.l 



Ti Mr. [senbarger's marriage to Sus 
laffer, his lir-t wife, there were l*'rn 
children, viz : Amanda, wife of Aaron 
Arnold, of Elkhart county; William, the 
subject "i this sketch who married 

Elizabeth Kemper and is a resident of Lake 
mip, Kosciusko county; Malinda, who 
died when tin • i ild : three i thci - 

in infancy. Mr-. Susanna [senbarger died 
March 5. [864, and Mr. [senbarger mar- 
ried Mr-. Catherine Shoemaker, who died 
August i_\ [886. His own death occurred 
February 21, 1890, he being deeply mourned 
by his family, and a- a pioneer and 

i by all his i friends, 

and far. To the second m there were 

born -i\ children, namely: Noah, J 

Samuel 1 1 1 and Waity. 

William [senbarger, the subject pn 

of this sketch, secured a good common- 

lucation and "ii the home 

farm until twei Id. then 

ul by the month awhile and 
ward rented a farm. He ma- ptem- 

Miss Mary Ulrich, 
en R. and Mary (Swihart) Ulrich 
and born August 9, [852. This union has 

with three children, 
Charles, who was born October -■;. 
finished hi- commoi - ;i mi 

and then attended Mam 
il term- I K married Mi-- I 
cord, a native of Kosciusko countv, 
and i- now secretary of a lumb ny in 

Palouse Valley, state of Washing 

ie. l«>rn August I''. 187 
from tin- common schools in 1891, 1. 
and 1- now attendii _ 
State Normal rn April 1;,. 1887, 

• lied in 1 1 

\t hi- marriage Mr. [senbarger had 



nothing but his housi furniture, 

enty-five dollars in money and a team. Mr.. 

er, howe I ah' >nt > 

een hundred <h >Ilars and tin- Mr. Isenb 
;ted in one hundn ■ • f w ild 

improved it with a house and barn and other 
1 and necessary buildings and devel- 
oped "i)e of the best farms ,,f its 
Lake ti w nship, which i- now 
hon 

Mr. [senbai ical partis 

Inn ha- strong Democratic proclivities. 
Since 1N71 he and hi- family 1 
members of the live branch < f the 

German Baptist church. 
the) conscientiously f the main- 

■ f which they liberally contribute 
from their mean-. The famih 

g the well nd useful 

of Lake township ami their 1 e here 

iny years has identified them with 
it- pi which has indeed 1 

marvelous within th< entury. 






\M< )S THEI d>< (RE MOLLENHOUR. 

The farmer i- not the only 1 • 
immunity. 1 Ii- ; 
e, important, but so is that of the mil- 
ler, because people must eat. although it 
would he far cheaper if they did not have 
t<> d^ so The miller ha- been 
-nice the first settlement, and at firs 
mills were run by water power and ii. 

•line. When -team came into use the 
the same, but deal 

quick 1 \ continued 

time passed, down t" the present day. It 



COMPEXDIL'M OF BIOGRAPHY. 



393 



used to lie said of the old saw-mills thai 
were run by water power and were what 
were called up-and-down mills, that they 
went up one day and down the next, but this 
was a slander on the famous old mills of 
our grandfathers. The mill of the subject, 
ii is scarcely necessary to add, is somewhat 
swifter than the old ones. And the times 
are swifter and the people are swifter, hut 
we probably do not enjoy ourselves any bet- 
ter than our grandparents did. 

Am< is T. Mollenhour was born in Frank- 
lin township, Kosciusko county, January 
u. 1863, and is yet a comparatively young 
man. His parents were William and Eliz- 
abeth (Harpman) Mollenhour. The father 
was a native of < )hio and came to this coun- 
ty after he was married. The Harpmans 
were natives of the Keystone state, and came 
to Hancock county, Ohio, at an early day. 
Both families unwed from Ohio to Franklin 
township, this county, and there the parents 
of subject were married. To this marriage 
eight sons were born: John, who was born 
in 1848 and married Miss Melcina Dore- 
meyer. lived in Sevastopol, but is now de- 
ceased; Isaac, born in 1N50. married Miss 
Anna Delena and lives in Mentone, where he 
is the head sawyer for Eli Tumbull; Will- 
iam 11.. born in 1852, married Miss Maggie 
Blue and resides in Missouri; Minor 1., born 
:ii (854, : - unmarried and lives in Ohio; 
Edward C. born in [856, married Miss 
Anna 1! Ely and lives in Mentone; Lyman 
L., born in E858, married Mary Morgan and 
resides in Harrismi township; Amos T.. 
born in [863; Hiram A., horn in [865, mar- 
ried Miss Nettie Thompson and resides in 
Franklin township. William Mollenhour 
was a farmer and a millwright, owned a 



grist-mill and a saw-mill and made a com- 
fortable fortune. He was prominent in the 
community where he resides and at his 
death, in about 1865, he left a name above 
reproach. 

Amos T. Mollenhour was reared in 
Franklin township, and learned the milling 
business of his father. He is the present 
proprietor of the planing and saw-mill at 
Mentone, which affords him a comfortable 
income and is one of the most important in- 
dustries of that busy town. He had asso- 
ciated with him until recently a Mr. Moon, 
but in August, 1901. he bought his partner's 
interest and i> now the sole owner of the 
property. Mr. Mollenhour received in his 
youth a limited education, but this he has 
since largely remedied. In March. [885, 
he wedded Mi^s Mary A. Rawlston, the 
daughter of Riley Rawlston. and by her has 
six children: Delhert C, horn in Decem- 
ber, 1887; Artie, deceased; Delcie died in 
infancy; Lodema, horn in [892; William 
K., born in October, 1894, and a boy that 
died unnamed at the age of two weeks. In 
politics Mr. Mollenhour is a Republican and 
of late years has taken a lively part in loc tl 
and state politics. He served as councilman 
for one term and during that time import- 
ant improvements were made in the streets, 
sidewalks, etc. He has represented his party 
in county conventions several times and was 
mice elected constable of Franklin township, 
but he being the only Republican elected on 
the ticket he did not qualify for the office 
He and his wife are members of the Baptist 
church of Mentone. while fraternally he he 
long-- to Camp No. 63 11, Ah idem \V< » idmen 
of America, at Mentone. He is a clean and 
reliable business man, has 'lie highest re- 



394 



li'MI'EXDIL'M OF BIOGRAPHY. 



spect of all who know him and in all his 
busim . the 

principles of the Xazarene. 



GE< IRGE MICHAELS. 

Th< grandfather 

sketch was a nath mam. When 

a young man he came to Amer 
in I \-\u\- ind ther 

and father of s ,-ere born. They were 

farme 
and upright 

moved from IV lia to 

m the \ i _•. the 

•untry 

n. At that time 

illy a w • and 

and v 

in the Revi ilution on I 

Mr. Mich ind in the 

inty and began t' 
the timber. More than once when the. 

there the) were in imminent peril from 
id f< r protection retreated into 
the deep woi ids and hid until t r was 

They were not "iily pioneers, lint 
frontiersmen as well, and were on the front 
i't the advani "i civilization which 

steadily drove back the Indian-. Wild ani- 
mals, such a- hears, deer, wolves, foxes, pan- 
were frequently met with, and no 
as encountered from some of 
them, particularly in the nighttin i 
MichaeN. with the assistance of hi- family. 
I farm and there he passed the 
m John, the I 
t, was horn in the k' 



ami when a small hoy came with his father 
•hio. and was there brought up in the 
g the Indians and the 
animals. He became unite a hunter, hut the 

;t i in the farm in 
felling 

imps and tilling th< 
amoi at dotted the ; 

Hi- education was hardly worthy of refer- 
the little he had beii ; the 

. with it 
chimney, its clapboard roof and . 
eon , were 

In [832 
Michaels the hand of 

royer in marriag I, and 

To this marri 
n thirteen childi 
John. Lydia A. ( the subji 

. Julia A., Peter, Elizabeth, Rachel. 
N'oah. Amanda. Cornelia and S 
eighl res in 1 
and improved the there un- 

ivhen he - and came to Kos- 

ciusko county and bought 
Sydney, Jackson township, where h< 
sided until his death, in 1875; his widow 
survived him until 1900. Thej w< 
eirs and most excellent people. 

Michae orn ( tool* 

1837, in Carroll county. Ohio, ami was 
I 0,1 a farm in that -tate. from an 1 
ecoming accustomed to hard work. He 
received a meager education, hut enough to 
enable him to transact the ordinary dut 
In [861 he was united in man 
with Miss Anna W'hitmer. a native of < >hio, 
who 1 I him with one child. I )a\ id 1 [., 

bom in 1 864. The latter married and re- 
11 Jackson township, hi- wife being 




RESIDENCE OF GEORGE MICHAELS 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



395 



deceased. Mr. Michaels took for hir sec- 
ond wife Miss Lavina Speglemyer and one 
child was born to this marriage, Delta M.. 
who died when nine months old. On April 
■J- 1870. Mr. Michaels married his third 
wife, Mrs. Martha J. (Wells) Keesey. the 
widow of Benjamin F. Keesey. Xo issue 
requited from this marriage. Mrs. Mich- 
aels had by her first husband five children: 
Florence J.. Harriet, Mary A., deceased. 
William A., deceased, and Fftie J. On Jan- 
uary 13, 1889, Mr. Michaels' moved on his 
present place, which was known as the old 
Wells farm, and since coming here has built 
a house, barn, outbuildings, and has cleared 
twenty acres. In his early life he worked 
very hard, but the last few years he has 
taken life easier. He is engaged in raising 
fine stock, particularly horses, besides the 
general operations of the farm. He is a 
Republican and has been supervisor for thir- 
teen years and also served as constable of 
Jackson township. He has represented 
the township in county conventions many 
times, and is a leading politician. He 
and his wife are members of the United 
Brethren church, of which he has been stew- 
ard and trustee. 



JAMES II. BLUE. 

This gentleman is a representative' of 

another of the families that came here when 
this part of the country was a howling wil- 
derness filled with wild animals and with 
roving bands of Indians. The subject of this 
memoir, when he was a boy, played with 
the little Indians many times, ami before 
their removal became familiar with their 

24 



games and methods of hunting. The family 
came here in the year 1835, and it is said 
were the first white people to locate per- 
manently in Franklin township. When they 
first came they had nothing but the wild 
tract of land, and at first were obliged to 
live in a small Indian hut. This answered 
the purpose until a substantial log cabin 
could be built. It was typical of the times, 
built of round logs, with a huge fireplace in 
one end. with puncheon floors and clapboard 
roof, set down in the midst of a little clear- 
ing in the dense woods. With this rude be- 
ginning in this county and with these wild 
and primitive surroundings, the Blues be- 
came Hoosiers in the correct meaning of the 
term and their cabin was a veritable "Hoos- 
ier's Xest." 

James H. Blue was born in Fayette coun- 
ty, < Ihio, November id. 1830. and is the 
child of Benjamin and Margaret (Riley) 
Blue. The Blues were originally from Scot- 
land, thence went to Holland owing to re- 
ligious persecution, and finally to America, 
as the only country where they could con- 
duct their affairs as they desired. Peter Blue, 
grandfather of subject, was born in Vir- 
ginia, and upon attaining manhood married 
Miss Susan Kelch and emigrated to Jeffersi >n 
county, Ohio, where the latter owned a farm 
of over two hundred acres and followed 
farming as well as coopering, the latter be- 
ing his trade. To him and wife eleven chil- 
dren were born, eight sons and three daugh- 
ters. Benjamin, the ninth child and the t 1- 
ther of subject, was born in December. [802. 
While he was yet a lad his father moved 
to Fayette county, of that state, and there 
Benjamin was reared to man's estate. He 
attended the rude subscription schools of his 
neighborhood and managed to secure a fair 



396 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



education in the primary branches, the three 
K- being the leading studies of that time. 

summers were spent at hard work <>n 
the farm. Peter Blue at the time of his 
death was possessed of a considerable es- 
tate, consisting mostly of land. This 
i'. nled some assistance t" his family in get- 
ting a start in life. Benjamin, upon attain- 
ing manhood, sought the hand of Miss Mar- 

Riley in marriage and in 1823 their 
wedding occurred in Fayette county. Sub- 
ject was unable at this time to buy land, and 
rdingly for twelve years he rented tracts 
and farmed same and managed to get a little 
ahead. But it was uphill bus best, 

and he thereupon determined rther 

west nd «;h cheaper and wliere his 

small savings would go as far. a- possible 
toward buying a farm, lie made the tri]> 
to Indiana in 1834, traveling on horseback 
the most of the distance "tit and hack, and 
while there learned that he could greatly 
Letter his condition. In the fall <<i [835 he 

i his family in covered wagons and 
came through a- fasl as possible I 
usko county, landing near lunette, in Prai- 
rie township, where he and famil) spent the 
first winter. During this tune he entered 
from the government a half-section of the 
best land he could find in what is now Frank- 
lin and Harrison townshi] try being 
made February 1''. 1836. I ' nrin^ 

lent Jackson's administration, t' 
the deed was signed b) Van Buren. He 
moved hi- family on this land ami occupied 
the Indian hut. as before narrated. He was 
probably the first permanent settler in 

)\\ Franklin town-hip. A fev 
ing famil surrounding town- 

ships, lut all else was wholly wild, unset- 
tled and I inexplored. They hen 



11 ]>i"iieer life in earnest. Mr. Blue . 
a man of great force of character and pro- 
digious energy, and he anil his family went 

work in dead earnc- rve a home 

from the wild-. Wild and savage animals 
were often seen in the surrounding woods, 
and deer occasionally came into the clear- 
steal t' ;rs. There 
plenty t. do for all members of the family. 
There was at all times the big tree> to fell. 

tp and burn, the brush to get rid of. the 
stumps !•• dig out or burn out. the crop- to 
>ow and reap among the stumps anil l»ru>h 
which came up again and again to annoy the 
settler. The boys were not permitted to be- 
come lonesome for want of work. And 
when they did occasionally have a frolic. 
such tntest, or a husking 

match, or a hunt of the neighborhood, — 
one of the circular sort. wh< £ cat many 

men would surround a large section of the 
forest and then slowly approach a common 
center, shooting all the animals that tried 
to break through the line. — they did not fail 
to enjoy then - - well as some of the 

youths of the present day do. The old set- 
leclare to a man that they had better 
tlrm do the youth of today. From 
tiie sportsman's standpoint they certainly 
■ lid. hut perhaps not from the standpoint of 
the dress party. Ere long the family moved 
better and more commodious cabin 
than tiie 1 Id Indian hi 1 was 

ahin in those days, and when a si 
got able to build a double hewi ouse 

he is having made a mar- 

>us advance. It was customary for 
settlers, w' ,\ one appeared, 

her in from many miles around and 
him in raising his log cabin. All the 
■ t in. cut down the 1 - 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



397 



about the proper size, cut them into suitable 
lengths, roll or haul them with oxen to the 
site of the proposed structure, where ax-men 
would notch them, whip off the bark and 
another gang would then hoist them to their 
places on the walls. Subject's father, and 
even himself, often participated in these 
"raisings." The father became familiar 
with all the best tracts of land in this vi- 
cinity by showing new settlers the desirable 
tracts as they came on for purposes of in- 
vestigation. To Benjamin and wife the fol- 
lowing children were born : Two that died 
in infancy; William, who married Miss 
Temperance Meredith ; Sarah, who wedded 
John VanTreese; Peter, who married Miss 
Minerva Milburn, and has been married 
once since; James H. 

James 11. Blue was educated in the old 
iog schoolhouse, with its greased paper win- 
dows and its puncheon floor. He applied 
himself diligently to his studies and was ed- 
ucated better than the average boy of that 
period. He remained hard at work on his 
father's farm until he attained his majority. 
In October, 1852, he went to Ohio where 
lie found employment on a farm in tilling 
1 ' soil, chopping wood and splitting rails. 
While thus engaged he became acquainted 
with Miss Phcebe, daughter of Elijah and 
Nancy Bloomer, and on July i<j. 1855, tne . v 
were married. The following January thev 
came to this county and rented land of his 
father, and a little later bought eighty acres. 
This was in the woods, but he went to work- 
to clear off the timber, and kept adding to 
Ids farm until at one time he owned three 
hundred and twenty acres. To himself and 
wife ten children were born: Elijah A.. 
born May 2d. 1856; [ohn, burn Julv 14. 
[858; Charles, born September [3, [860; 



Margaret, born January 20, 1863; William 
J., born October 15, 1S64; Benjamin F., 
born October 15. 1866; Marion E., born in 
November, 1 868, and died January 30, 

^77- 

James H. Blue, like his father, is a mem- 
ber of the Democratic party. The father 
served this count}' in the state legislature 
about the year [851 and was a man of un- 
usual natural ability. The son has all of the 
father's good and strong- qualities. He has 
served as supervisor and in other ways h is 
made himself useful to the people of this 
vicinity. His name is above reproach and 
his life is blameless. He is one of the lead- 
ers of this portion of the county in all mat- 
ters that tend to the upbuilding of the com- 
munitv. The county has no better farmer 
nor representative citizen. 



PETER B. BLUE. 



Among those who first braved the wilds 
of Kosciusko county, when the Indians were 
still here and the wild animals were every- 
day sig-fits in the dense woods, is the subject 
of this sketch. He was born August 29, 
1829. and was brought here by his father in 
1835. At that time all of northern Indiana 
was an almost unbroken wilderness, with a 
general covering of heavv timber, but here 
and there interspersed with small open tracts 
or prairies. When they arrived here the 
Pottawattomie Indians were as thick 'is 
birds' nests, their wigwams dotting- the 
banks of every little stream in the county. 
They fished and hunted and always broug • 
in many skin- of the game they killed. 
From them the subject learned to talk their 



398 



UPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



langu .'.dl that he had no trouble in 

making himself understood. He ran races 

with the little redskins and wrestled with 
them. They were generally friendly, but 
were ready at an; e moment to take 

up the hatchet and strike terror into the 
homes of the pioneers. lie learned from 
them their methods of hunting, and soon in 
all things was a- expert as they were, lie 

part in the neighboring hunts when at- 
tempts were made on a large scale t" kill off 
tiie wolves that infested the dense forest. 
His father, Benjamin Blue, was the tir-t 

i in tlii- section of the county. Their 
land was wholly in the deep woods and the 

.md lirnsh had t< red "ft' b< 

a en p could I • I to work 

at an early age and soon learned from prac- 
tical experience to know what was the mean- 

[ the words "hard work." I hit there- 
were many pleasures in the woods for all 
that. There were the shooting matches, 
where the young men would try their skill, 
and the racing, the hunting, the fishing, the 
reaping and the harvesting, the meetings un- 
der the big trees, where the old-fashioned 
circuit riders sang their wonderful sermons 
for hours at a time, the subscription si 
and the three Rs and the master with his 
rod about ten feet or more in length i which 
they believed in. as did their parents). With 
them it was "spare the rod and spoil the 
child." and as they did not wish to do the 
latter, they administered allopathic dosi 
the rod. and the thrived under 

their administrations. Subject | 
through all of this 'most in- 

creditable that such sweeping changes have 

made in the comparatively short - 
of two or three generations. When subject 

wenty \ears old his father gave him 



his time and he began to do for himself. 
He went hack to ( Hlio and worked there for 

one year in farming and cutting w 1. and 

then returned to this county. He joined 
with his brother James and together they 
farmed their father's place for two yi 
He then made some changes, but remained 
with his father until he was twenty-six years 
old. ( >n August 6, 1855, he was united in 
marriage with Miss Minerva Milburn, a 
sister of Austin Milluirn. One child was 
born to this union. Elizabeth M.. who he- 
came the wife of William Moltenhi ur, and 
died January 19, [899. Mr. Blue's first 
wife died Mas _■<>. 1857, ami after a time he 
ed Elizabeth Gmbbs, who bore him 
seven children, as follows: William F., 
born September _'.}. i860, died in 1873; 
Austin horn in February, [863, married 
Mi-- Sarber and lives in Franklin township; 
Alonzo, lxirn in May. 1865, wedded Miss 
Ollie Mollenhour and resides in Franklin 
township; Benjamin, bom 1868, married 
Mis- Amanda Whetstone and lives 111 
Franklin township: lames \\. married Miss 
Ida Brewer and lives in Harrison township; 
John, who married Miss Pearl Rouch, lives 
with his father; Etta became the wi 
Edward Halterman and lives in Athens. 
Fulton county. The subject's last wife 
died September jo, [893, since which time 
he ha- resided with his son John. When 
was first married he owned 
one hundred and twenty acres, all in the 

w Is. an«l of this he cleared before he was 

married about twenty acres. He added to 
this farm from time to time until he at one 
time owned a total of four hundred anil 
twenty acres. He lias been a hard worker, 
and is so yet, despite his age He i- a I >■ 
crat ami has filled several local |>osit ons 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



399 



much to his own credit and to the satisfac- 
tion of his neighbors. He is widely known 
and has the respect and confidence of a large 
circle of friends. His long and busy life is 
rapidly drawing to a close, but when he 
finally passes over the river it will be with 
the knowledge that his life has been well 
and honorably spent. 



G. \Y. WORLEY. 



George W. Worley, county superintend- 
ent of schools of Kosciusko county, Indi- 
ana, and now residing in the city of War- 
saw, is a native of the Buckeye state and w as 
born in Ashland county, December 19. 1855. 
but has lived in Kosciusko county. Indiana, 
since his tenth year, his parents. Elisha R. 
and Mary J. Worley. having come to the 
county in 1S05. The father for six years 
was engaged in the drug business at Silver 
Lake and then settled on a farm in Lake 
township, where his wife died in 1884. and 
where he still lives, at the age of seventy- 
five rears. He is a Republican in politics 
and a Lutheran in religion and aided in 
founding the First Lutheran society at Sil- 
ver Lake and financially in erecting the 
church edifice. The children born to Elisha 
R. and Mary J. Worley are two in number, 
namely: Dora, wife of Benjamin F. Van 
Cam]), of Warsaw, and G. W.. whose name 
opens this biographical memoir. 

George W. Worley was educated funda- 
mentally in the common schools at Silver 
Lake, hut was so well instructed that he was 
able at the youthful age of sixteen years to 
enter upon the vocation of teacher. I lis 
first school was known as No. _'. of Seward 



township, and his pupils were nearly all 
older than himself. But he proved to he 
fully adequate for the position, and his great 
success led him to decide upon teaching- as 
his future pursuit in life. Many of his 
earlier pupils have also become teachers or 
members of other professions, some of them 
being quite prominent in their various call- 
ings. Mr. Worley 's plan as an instructor 
was to mingle freely with his pupils and thus 
become familiar with their individual dis- 
positions and win their confidence, a plan 
that proved to he fraught with satisfactory 
results and which he still adheres to. Dur- 
ing vacations Mr. Worley attended the 
North Indiana Normal Institute at Val- 
paraiso and resumed teaching when the 
summer season had passed. With the 
exception of six years when engaged in 
the manufacture of brick and tile at Silver 
Lake. Mr. Worley has taught school con- 
tinuously. For three years he was principal 
of the school at Brookston, White county, 
but the remainder of the time has been de- 
voted to the schools of Kosciusko county. 
six years of this time as principal at Silver 
Lake. He has always taken much interest 
in the educational work of the county and 
attends all teachers' meetings and -, iciety 
gatherings. 

In December. 1895, Mr. Worley was 
elected count)- superintendent of schools and 
assumed the duties of the position at once. 
succeeding Prof. E. J. McAlpine, who died 
in office. Since entering upon his official 
duties Mr. Worley has been an enthusiastic 
friend of high schools and within the pasl 
seven years has encouraged their organiza- 
tion, six of which have been organized un- 
der his instrumentality, making fourteen in 
all. five being township high schools at Os- 



4 



IPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



Beaver Dam. Claypool and 
Burket, all other- being joint or 

mixed high and common. Any county 
pupil may now secure a high-school train- 

fullv prepared to enter collej 
The attendance at the high scb in- 

one hundred per cent. There are 
hundred and sixty-six country .-ch- 
in the county, in which are two hundred and 
\ h' Jin about twenty-five 
per cent, have had normal training. An in- 
eld each fall i- counted a- a part of 
. and a lead i iciation 

holds a if two day- at each Thank-- 

ng vacation. About ninety-five per cent. 
of 1 attend both. The abandon- 

ment "f small and better work in 

tral schools. \\ it' 
ter preparation for high scl now the 

prevailii j 

Prof. < '>. W. Worley was united in mar- 

Middletown, Was 
•"it county, Pennsylvania, to Mis- Anna 
. who had 1 i if hi- pupils 

Kosciusko county and had finished her edu- 
tion in the Washington (Pennsylvania) 
minary. Of the three children 
born to this marriage Beryl i- now nine 
years old, I.ucv and one child died 

in infancy. 

Fraternally Prof. Worlej is a membei 
Masonic brotherhood, is an < Md Fellow. 
a Knight of Pythias, a Red Man and a mem- 
ber of the Tribe of Hen Hur. II' 

the chair- in the* >d(l subordinate 

lodge, has -at in the grand lodge an. I • 
member of the grand encampment. In p 
tics he i- activ» Republican and has 

sen ed e t.> various conventi 

of hi- party, while socially he and his wife 
stam edh a- favoi 



MRS. ALLIE JONES. 

It i- a fact that the women of the farm- 
immunity are hardh ever given any 
credit fur the sacrifices and lalx>rs incident 
l«i their li > erv often tl 

material benefit to their husbands or 
surpass them in industry anil i they 

are generallj iked when tl - 

are entered on the daily ledger of ' 
munity. As a matter of fact, it is true that 
the most of men ascribe t" their wive- the 
greati in accumulating a home and 

in rearing a family. Most people forget that 
"the hand that rocks the cradle i- the hand 
that rules the world." man 

; i .it mother. X' i man should ■ 
look the part taken in ' i ss b) the wife 

of hi- w ith 

him through the trial- of getting start 
the world and should he the of his 

triumph- a- well a- hi- sorrows. But some 
men arrogate to then 
of the glon and attempt to belittli 
borne by woman in our civilization. How- 
ever, these men are few and far bel 
and should he. < live y< iur wi 
credit and let the sunshine into their lives 
and you will he repaid a thousand fold. 

Mrs. Mlie Jones is the daughter of Will- 
iam and Saloma i Wint< nier, 
and was horn in Harrison township, Kos- 
ciusko county, Indiana, April i~. \> ? 
Gochenouer family are descended 
old \ imily and ai 

ither was Inirn in Virginia and 

t\\ ice married. Mr-. Jones child 

of the second marriage. Her father 

pioneer of Harrison township, this county, 

and his second man here. 

■ tii to the second mar- 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



401 



riage. as follows: Benjamin, who married 
Miss Alice Hartman and is a veterinary sur- 
geon at Warsaw; George and John, twins, 
of whom George married Jennie Haines 
and lives in Seward township and John mar- 
ried Junia Longfellow and resides on the old 
farm in Harrison township: Eliza and Elza, 
twins, of whom the former married Minor 
Lynn and lives in Wayne township, and the 
latter is deceased ; Dora, who became the 
wife of Hiram Sarber, is now a widow and 
resides in Warsaw : Allie. subject. Lhe lat- 
ter was reared on her father's farm and 
taught the duties of the household. She at- 
tended, the country schools and advanced far 
enough in her studies to secure a certificate 
for teaching, and accordingly taught four 
terms in Harrison. Wayne and Seward 
townships. On August 22, 1885, s ' le wed- 
ded Hollis L. Doran, the son of Nelson and 
Elizabeth (Blue) Doran. Her husband had 
graduated in 1885 from the Danville Busi- 
ness College, and taught bookkeeping and 
algebra in two of the county normals. Later 
he owned a drv goods store and a hardware 
store in Silver Lake, and was thus engaged 
at the time of hi- death, in 1900. One child 
was born to this union. Roy, born in Febru- 
ary. 1887, who i- well educated and lives 
with his mother. In [895 subject married 
Samuel Jones, who was horn in Knox coun- 
ty, nhi.,. November -'• 1841. Air. Jones 
came here when a hoy and worked by the 
month, and was first married t" Elizabeth, 
daughter of Thomas Warren. 1 1 is first wife 
died in November, 181)4. Mr. Jones was a 
prosperous fanner and accumulated con- 
siderable property before hi- death. He w is 
a member of the L'nited Brethren church, in 
which faith he died, and was an active mem- 
ber, being at times -teward and chorister. 



etc. He was highly respected for his many 
e: cellent qualities. Mr. Jones was a soldier 
during the Civil war, having enlisted June 4, 
[862, in the Eighty-fifth Regiment Ohio 
Volunteer Infantry, and after a faithful ser- 
vice received an honorable discharge at 
Lamp Chase. Mrs. Jones' half brother, 
Henry Baughman, who now lives on the 
place with subject, was also a private in the 
Federal army during the Rebellion and 
served three years in an Indiana regiment. 
To her second marriage one child was horn 
to Mrs. Jones. — Ruth, born May id. 1896. 
.Mrs. Jones is a member of the Methodist 
Episcopal church of Burket. She is highly 
respected by a large circle of friends for her 
estimable qualities of mind and heart. 



SMITH HIGGINS. 



One of the families which came from 
Kentucky in the early settlement of this 
state, to find a home where slavery was not 
recognized, was that represented by the sub- 
ject of this memoir. The grandfather of 
subject was a prominent slave holder of the 
Blue Grass state, and there the father of 
subject was partly reared. When he was .1 
boy his father gave up slavery and came 
into the woods of Indiana to find a free 
home, in order that his growing children 
should not he raised under the blighting ef- 
fects of that southern institution, slavery. 
They entered land where subject now re- 
sides, a tract of one hundred and twenty 
acres, which was partially covered with 
dense timber. In all this vicinity at that 
time there were splendid tracts awaiting the 
farmer at the usu rnment price and 



402 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



•ii afterward came in very fast, 
family came through in wagons, sought 
their land, camped in the wagon and under 
the trees while a nule 1« >g house was built, 
and began to clear off the heavy growth 
that covered the land as with a huge blanket. 
The father cleared off in his lifetime about 
fifty acres. He had few opportunities for 
securing an education, but managed I 
cure a fair schooling at the "hi lug sub- 
scription schools. lie was an intel 
and thrifty husbandman and t< •< 'k much 
pride in his farm ami in his stuck, lie was 
a member of the Methodist Epis 
church and an active worker in church cir- 
nd was a liberal supporter of all worthy 
enterprises and mo> ements. 

Tiie subject of this sketch. Smith Hog- 
gins, is the s, ,n of Joseph G. and Sarah 

LiggillS, and was ln-rn in Sew- 
ard township, this county, January 7. 1855. 
lie is one of four children lxirn to his par- 
follows: Smith, subject; Thomas, 
who wedded and lives in Seward township: 
Myrtle, deceased; Mercy, who died when a 
young girl. The subject of this memoir 
was reared < >n his father's place and was 

1 education in the common 
branches and passed the examination and 
was given a certificate t" teach scho 
this county. He finished his education in 
the Indiana Normal School at Valparaiso, 
attending that excellent institution fi 
year. He then began to teach and I 
in all nine months, givil E 
faction, as his methods were excellent and 
modern. In early manhood he was joined 
in marriage with Miss Henrietta K. Mc- 
Millen, who was a native of Lima. Ohio, her 
father being a resident of Valparaiso, Indi- 
ana, where the young couple met and 



the subject was attending there. 

Their marriage was celebrated February 
jo. [879, and to them three children have 
been born, as follows: Lyman G., born 
March 3, [880, at home with his parents: 
lied, horn in iSS_\ lives at home: Thomas 
R.. l>orn August <). 1885, lives at home. 
Upon his marriage Mr. 1 liggins moved upon 
the farm of his father, anil has followed 
farming ever since, upon the death of his 
father, in 1879, taking charge of the oil 
place. His mother died when he was 
small hoy. Mr. Higgins i~ a Republican and 

much interested in his party's sue 
though he does not himself take an active 
part in politics. He and his wife are m< 
hers of the Church of God, and he is one 
the elders and trustees of that church. 
He makes a specialty of small fruit grow - 
_■. and raises immense quantities of straw- 
berries, blackberries, etc. He sells to com- 
mission houses, and his product 1 all 
portions of the United States. He is thor- 
oughly posted in the growing of the small 
fruits, is well known and highly respected. 
Mr. II as in hi- possession an old 
parchment deed executed under the admin- 
istration of 1 'resident Martin Van Buren, 
and which is a valuable relic in the Hig- 
home. 



M >HN M. LLI >YI> 



There i- a great difference between the 
business ideas of fifty 50 and t' 

•he present time. In former times there 
was a little or no co-operation among busi- 

-s men. The partnerships v ere small and 
the business was confined to lines wholly 
different from those of this day. The tan- 




csp^n 




7 



it— 




JlM jJU Jf jAvycL 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



403 



ner was independent, and many men started 
small tanneries, as it was found that the 
times required that the large number of furs 
in the country should he used up in some 
fashion. So here and there through the 
woods little tanneries were started and there 
the early settlers secured their suppli 
leather. They either took their skins there 
to be dressed on share- or for so much 
money, and then journeymen shoemakers 
came through in the fall and the spring of 
each year to make the shoes of the family 
fn 'in the leather which they had obtained 
from their nearest tanner. The father of 
subject was a tanner by trade, but his period 
ran into the next one. and he therefore gave 
up that business and engaged in farming. 
The subject of this memoir was born in 
Fayette county. Ohio. June 17. 1840. and is 
the son of Amor and Roseann \Y. (Tully) 
Lloyd. The former was born in 181 2. and 
died in 1857. at the age of forty-five years. 
while the latter was born in 181 3 and died in 
- • ". at the age of seventy-four years. The 
Lloyds were of Scotch descent and the Tully 
family lived in Ross county. Ohio. The fa- 
ther of subject in early life learned the trade 
of tanner, and subject also learned it. but as 
it was distasteful to him he gave it up lie- 
fore he really started in it and took up farm- 
ing, following the latter pursuit down to the 
present time. The parents met and were 
married in Ohio, and to them were born the 
ving five children: John M.. subject: 
Permelia, who became the wife of Isaac 
Vincent and is now deceased: Cordelia, who 
reside- in Ohio and is unmarried: Melissa. 
who wedded Joseph Watts and lives in 111 i— 
Isabella, who is unmarried and lives 
with her sister Cordelia in Ohio. Amor 
Lloyd worked at the tanner's trade until 



1853. when he gave it up and bought a farm 
and began tilling the soil. In 1857 he 
his farm in Ohio and went to Missouri, 
where he bought two hundred and twenty- 
two acres and then returned ti 1 Ohio, but ere 
he could do anything farther he was stricken 
down by death, passing away November 25. 
[857. He was a man of excellent parts and 
principles and his early death was a great 
blow to his stricken family. He was a 
prominent Whig in his time, and just before 
his death was just as prominently ass* iciated 
with the new- Republican party. He served 
as justice of the peace for several years in 
Franklin township. Fayette county, Ohio. 
and served as postmaster of Otterbine for 
several years. At the same time he was 
obliged to carry the mail between Otterbine 
and Bloomingsburg once each week, mak- 
ing the trip of three and a half miles 
horseback. In many ways he made himself 
useful in the busy world. 

John M. Lloyd, the subject proper, be- 
gan to learn the tanner's trade, but as has 
been stated, changed to farming. He was 
■ thirteen years old when he went upon 
the farm and was about seventeen when his 
father passed away. Being the eldest child. 
the cares of his mother and his sisters were 
thrown largely upon his shoulders, but he 
did not spare himself and soon had the af- 
fair- left by his father in good shape. He 
remained at home until he was of age 
then started out to do for himself. One of 
the first things he did. and it was very much 
to his credit, was to selecl _ wife and 
marry her. He chose Mi-- Mary C. daugh- 
Elijah and Nancy 1 Hopkins) Bloom- 
er, who was hirn August 9. 1845. in Ohio 
and was reared on a farm, and hence was 
rifted ( -- -' her husband instead of l>eing 



404 



COM PES ni I'M OF BIOGRAPHY. 



a burdi his time and efl rts 

iklren were horn, as follov 
Arvada, born October i. 1866, became the 
wife of James Alexander and lives in Frank- 
lin township: Dessie M., who was born N 
vember 8, i86g, is unmarried and at home 
and is a member of the Baptist church at 
Mentone; Eva. born Februar) 19. 1872, v 
tt ife "i "k and died April _ 

. born September _'.■;. 
1875; Mace, born Sej io, 1885. 

Tin - good com- 

nd arc an honor to 
thei -. The family came from Ohio 

lo this count) in 1868 and bought the farm 
"ii which Mr. Lloyd now lives, formerly 
pari nil. I [ere he has since 

I in the task of tilling the 
stubborn soil. In 1882 he erected his fine 
! »rick house. He makes a specialty • 

ir the market and by his ex- 
makes ni' 1st of his monej . 
In politics he is a Republican, and has never 
voted anything but the straighl ticket. The 
ily i- well known and highl) respected. 
Mr. Lloyd • 1 mosl 

rmers of the o untv. 



TIH >M \S CL \KK HOLD (WAY. 

way. present tru 
of Wayne township, Kosciusko county, In- 
diana, with his residence near the citj nf 
Warsaw, was born on a farm in Mar-hall 
county, Indiana. August _>.;. 1851. Hi 
1 l.e\ 1 and Harriet ( Mather 1 I : 
who were bom, reared and mart' 
Stark county, Ohio, and came to Indiana 
ir three years 1 1 r i < 1 r to the birth of their 



son, the subject proper of this -ketch. The 
parent- lived on the Marshall county farm 
until about 1882, when they remov< 
I'.uren county, Michigan, and they now have 
a plea-ant home in the great fruit In 
that -tate. 

Thomas Clark 1 lolloway w 

Id homestead, and whih 

iltivation of the home place learned in 
addition the carpenter'- trade End 
take contracts for buildings. In [883 he 
came to Wayne township, Kosciusko coun- 
ty. Indiana, and purchased a farm two miles 
northwest of Warsaw, and engaged i: 
tracting in conjunction with his fan 
as a builder employing three or four a 
ants. Having been a lifelong Re] 
and a very popular advocate of die prini 
of and a hard worker for the party, it cen- 
tered it- \otc- upon him and him 
township trustee in November, 1900, an 
office he ha- tilled impartially ami faithfully 
to the present time. Wayne township has 
eleven school buildings, all hrick. and an- 
other now in the course of construction. 
Mr. 1 lolloway'- policy i- to pay the It. 
salaries to the teacher- and to keep tin 
instructor- employed a- long a- | 

March 16, 1878, Mr. Hi 
joined in marriage in Warsaw wit 1 '. 
Jennie Robinson, a school teacher in \\ 
township and the daughter of Stew, 
and Ma> ner 1 Robinsi >n, who 

came from ( >hio and : 1 
of Warsaw. Mrs. Holloway was educated in 

iwnsbipof Wayne and the city of War- 
saw and at the age of seventeen began ti 

Jit in Marshall and Kosciusko 

counties until m. nd since then has 

il term- in Kosciusko county 

only. Two child; 1 the union of Mr. 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



405 



and Mrs. Holloway, namely: Floren 1\.. 
seventeen years of age, a graduate from the 
common schools and now a student in the 
high school : Harry M., a little boy of eight ; 
Mrs. Holloway is a member of the United 
Brethren church at Zion, near her home. 

Stewart Robinson and Margaret Conner 
were both natives of Ireland. Mr. Stewart 
was born in Dublin, was a first cousin 'if A. 
T. Stewart, deceased, formerly the dry- 
g< ods prince of New York city, of marble 
palace tame, and with him. or near him, was 
reared as a boy. Mr. Robinson left his 
h'.me when twenty-one years "Id and in 
[849 arrived in New York city, where he 
learned shoemaking. He then made a trip 
through the south, located in Cincinnati. 
( )hio, and was there married in 185 1. In 
f863 the family came to Kosciusko county, 
Indiana, ami settled in Clay township, five 
miles south of Warsaw, where Mr. Robin- 
son bought and cleared up a farm, on which 
he died at fifty-one years of age, his widow 
surviving him eleven years. 

Besides having been a common-school 
teacher. Mrs. Holloway has been and still 
is an ardent. Sunday school worker in the 
Zion United Brethren church. She and her 
husband both take an unusual interest in 
educational affairs, their respective voca- 
tions having brought them into close touch 
with the public schools. As a builder Mr. 
Holloway has won merited commendation 
from the public and as a .business man his 
reputation is pure and unsullied and his 
trustworthiness as a township official i- im- 
plicity relied upon by all citizens, regard 
Y-- of creeds in politics, while as members 
of the social fabric he and wife hold rela- 
tionship with the best people of the cit) if 
Warsaw and the township of Wayne. Their 



lives of usefulness have exerted a moral in- 
fluence that permeates all classes, high ami 
low. 



EMAXUEL H. HOHMAX. 

If a list could be made of the original 
homes of the old settlers of this portion of 
Indiana, it would be found that a very large 
number of them came to this state from 
Pennsylvania. Their ancestors would be 
found to have settled in the Keystone state 
both before and after the Revolution, and 
would be found, also, to have come orig- 
inally from the German empire. Thousands 
of our best citizens are of this descent and 
Mood. The German people are noted the 
world over for their thrift, honesty and in- 
dustry, and for that reason the United States 
iiave always welcomed them to our sin •re-. 
The) undoubtedly constitute our best pop- 
ulation. The subject of this sketch was 
born in Schuylkill county. Pennsylvania, 
October 28, 1862. and is the son of George 
and Lesetta L. (Sellers) Hohman. George, 
the father, was born in Germany and when 
a lad of thirteen years was placed upon hi- 
own resources. The laws of that country 
required that the youngest son should sup- 
port his mother, if necessary. As the law- 
was imperative, and as this was not required 
in the case of subject'- father, the family 
planned to -end the boy out of the country 
so as to escape the unnecessary measures 
of the law. Accordingl} he was placed in 
a flour barrel, and was thus turned over to 
an uncle of his mother'-, a sea captain, and 
in this manner he wa- smuggled out of the 
country. The barrels passed the govern- 
ment inspector, who so changed them that 



. 



i OMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



eft standing on his head. This 
eved, much to his personal com- 
fort. After the inspection was over the cap- 
tain released the boy and tix.k care <>t" liitn 
until he was landed in America, after many 
days of tossing on the ocean. Upon disem- 
barking he made his way to Pennsylvania 
and there soon found employment in a 
butchi >p. which business he learned. 
His employer was a huckster in the butcher 
line and the boy was at first required to 
run the wagon. During his boyh 1 in Ger- 
many he was thrown among peopli 
many different nationalities, and thus 
learned to -peak and understand seven dif- 
ferent languages. This was quite a valu- 
able accomplishment, and made his services 
much more valuable to his employers. He 
remained in the Keystone state, working at 
various kinds of employment, and upon 
reaching maturity was united in marriage 
with Miss Lesetta L. Sellers. After his 
marriage he resided in that state for four- 
teen years, and during that time he made 
considerable money, which \ 1 for 

future investment. At the end of the four- 
teen years he came to Indiana and settled on 
tiie hanks of Yellow (.'reek lake where he 
purchased a tract of forty acre- of wholly 
unimproved land, ami later bought forty 
more. When he came here he hail 
four hundred dollar- only. He had accumu- 
in Pennsylvania eleven hundred dol- 
and had placed the same in a hank foi 
-afe keeping, hut the bank failed and his 
hard-earned wages were saved for sol i< 
el-e. lie applied hi- four hundred dollars 
on his farm in this county, and hi- family 
had to -nfTer for actual ne • 
they got through the trial and soon were 
in comfortable circumstances. While in 



Pennsylvania he had learned to make hrick. 
and here he worked at this in connection 
with farming. Hi- children were as fol- 
lows: George W.. Rosa, Edwin, Albert, 
lame.-. Emanuel II.. Emma and Samuel. 

When Emanuel II. Hohman was eleven 
sturdy and strong ami was 
required to take the mold- and make a full 
hand in the hrick yard of his father. In the 
winters he had to cut wood and had hut 
little chance to acquire an education. When 
he was thirteen year- old hi- father died and 
he was then taken out of school entirely. 
Soon after this he wa- placed on In- own re- 
sources and began to learn the carpenter's 
trade. < hie day, while on a buildii . 
and fractured hi- skull, hut a- his constitu- 
tion was excellent he recovered, though he 
partially lost hi- hearing. After that epi- 
sode he worke! at the cabinetmaker's trade, 
and continued until 1894, when he b 
his present place and moved upon the same. 
( In account of ill health he ha- taken up the 
idea of conducting a summer resort on the 
hank- of Yellow Creek lake, one of the most 
beautiful bodies of water in the state 
great many people from far and near spend 
their summer months here in hunting, boat- 
id fishing. Mr. and Mr-. Hohman 
were married February _'_•. [886, the latter*s 
maiden name being Ida J. Dirck. She was 
ln>rn June _•-. 1864, and ha- presented her 

tnd with four children, as fol 
Roy E.. Winnie E., Bertha M. and Cloe R. 
Mr. Hohman f- a member of the Repub- 
lican party, hut of late years ha- worki 
the Prohibition ticket. He and his wife 
are 11 genial people, -land high in the 

community for their many good qu 
and are verv host and hostess 

■ i' many who come here for recreation. 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



407 



Mrs. Holiman is an excellent manager and 
they have at times as many as forty 
boarders. 



BENJAMIN F. BEAR. 

Some three or four generations ago the 
ancestors of the subject of this sketch 
crossed the ocean from Germany, their na- 
tive country, and sought the shores of the 
new world. They had heard of the oppor- 
tunities opening up in this country, and de- 
siring to benefit themselves and their de- 
scendants determined to seek new fields and 
surround themselves with new and better 
conditions. Accordingly they came over in 
sailing vessels, landing at New York, and 
went to Pennsylvania and there found a 
home. From this family branch in that 
state all of the name in America, so far as 
known, originated. They possessed all the 
thrift usually ascribed to the Germanic race, 
and ere long were in good financial condi- 
tion and prosperous to a large degree. The 
original German spelling of the family name 
was Behr, but by the later generations has 
been changed to its present form. 

Benjamin F. Bear, the subject of this 
memoir, is the son of Daniel and Mary 
i Hansen Bear, and was born in Schuylkill 
county. Pennsylvania, January 24. 1842. 
He grew up in that state and learned the 
business of farming, during that time secur- 
ing a limited education at the neighboring 
school^. Upon reaching maturity he mar- 
ried Miss Hauser, the daughter of Jacob 
Hauser, a prominent German of that coun- 
ty, and they began the battle of life to- 
gether. To this marriage ten children were 
born, all of whom are now deceased except 
Moses and subject. Their names are as (Al- 



lows: Percilla. Reuben, John. Daniel, 
Nathan, Diana, Joseph, Moses, Polly and 
Benjamin F. Daniel Bear was a prosperous 
and intelligent farmer and owned a tract of 
one hundred acres of good land from which 
he derived sufficient income to support his 
family and rear them up to healthy and in- 
dustrious lives. He belonged to and was an 
elder in the German Reformed church and 
was a man of influence in the religious 
thought of the time in that vicinity. He 
continued to reside upon that farm until his 
death in 18(12. His widow passed away 
the following year. They were people of 
much intelligence and of undoubted respect- 
ability, earnest workers in the church of 
Christ, and passed eminently useful and in- 
dustrious lives. The father was a man 
whose opinions were sought 011 all the im- 
portant questions of the neighborhood, and 
his advice was sound and good. The sub- 
ject of this sketch was reared upon his fa- 
ther's farm, where he became familiar with 
severe work, and during the period of his 
youth managed to secure a fair education 
which he has greatly improved by steady 
leading ever since. He is now well educated 
in German and English and takes much in- 
terest in the deep subjects of state policy and 
learning generally, as all German people do. 
When he had attained the age of nineteen 
years he began to do for himself, learning 
the carpenter's trade, and continued work- 
ing at the same for three years. In early 
manhood he met and married Miss Reb< 
daughter of David and Lydia (Hoppis) 
I laming, of an excellent German family. 
About this time he became dissatisfied with 

the hills and 1 r soil of Pennsylvania and 

determined to go farther west, and accord- 
ingly came to Dekalb county, this state, leav 



40S 



COMPEXniUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



'ennsylvania April 8, [862, and requir- 
ing three days to make the journey. He re- 
mained in that county until July of the same 
year, and then determined to continue on 
until he found something better. This 
brought him to Kosciusko county, where he 

in land in Franklin township and re- 
mained there two years, lie then sold that 
place and bought the place he now occupies, 
and here he has continued ever since. When 
he purchased it the land was wholly unim- 
proved, hut it is now under a tine state of 
cultivation, with excellent buildings, etc. 
He has been a hard worker and for fifteen 
years was in the berry business, out of which 
he made considerable money, lie raised as 

is one thousand bushels of strawberries 
in a single year, lie is in comfortable cir- 
cumstances and is enjoying life. To him 
and his good wife the following children 
were born : Lewis \._ deceased: F.meline 

F... who became the « ife 1 ■ !' John R. I Lerald 
and lives in Indian territory; Amanda I.. 
wife of Rev. S. 1.. Speck, lives in Seward 
township; James !■'.. who wedded Miss 
Mamie Snyder and lives in Burket. The 
family is well known and highly resp< 
Mr. Hear is an ardent Republican, although 
he was reared a Democrat. He is an inde- 
pendent thinker and could nut stand the pol- 
icies of the national Democracy. He and 
his wife are members of the Church ol 
of which he has been an elder fur forty 
lie is ..ne 'if the county's leading 
farmers and citizens. 



ROBERT F( (REMAN. 

It will always he a mark of distinction 

to ha 1 in the Federal army during 

■eat Civil war between the states. The 



old soldier will receive attention no matter 
where he goes if he will hut make himself 
known, particularly if he ]>uts mi his 
faded uniform. And when he passes away, 
which he will soon do. friends will pay him 
suitable eulogy for the sacrifices he made 
forty years ago on the field or in the 1. 
dreaded hospital. And ever afterward his 
lescendants will revere his memory and take- 
pride in recounting hi- - for his coun- 
try in the hour of peril. The subject of this 
sketch is one of the old soldiers who went 
forth to fight to save the union of states. 
He was born in Union county, Pennsylvania, 
October 30, 1^44. and is the son of I 
and Mary (Swartzlander) Foreman. The 
great-grandfather of subject came from 
Germany to this country many 
and settled in Pennsylvania, and there the 
grandfather and the father were ln.ru. The 
Swartzlander family also lived in Union 
county, Pennsylvania. In that state the par- 
ents of subject were married. Nine chil- 
dren were l>orn to this marriage, as fol 
Isaac. Irvin. Robert, Rebecca, Sarah. Sam- 
uel. Daniel A.. James I". and George A. 
The mother having died in the sprit 
1 So-, the father married for his second wife- 
Matilda Shaw yer. who bore him three chil- 
dren: Polly A., Ammond and 

Foreman, having a large family to 
support, did not enlist at the Commencement 
of the Rebellion, and was drafted in < 
her. 1862, under the conscription act 

ompany G, One Hundred and 
Forty-seventh Regiment, and nine 

month- He was discharged in June. t863, 
at the expiration of his term of service, and 
returned to Pennsylvania, where he con- 

le until 1899, when he \ 
.'.way. He was an intelligent man. a _ 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



409 



citizen, an honest man and an ardent Repub- 
lican. Ili.> long life was filled with good 
deeds and the world was better for his hav- 
ing lived. Robert Foreman was reared on 
the farm and spent his youth at hard work 
in clearing up the forests and brush heaps 
on his father's farm. His education was 
very meager and he began to do for him- 
self at an early age. He worked out by the 
month for ten summers and laid up a con- 
siderable sum. On September [3, 1864, he 
enlisted in Company H. One Hundred and 
Eighty-fourth Pennsylvania Regiment, as a 
recruit and was sent to his regiment at the 
front. He saw bloody service in and around 
Petersburg, Virginia. Hatcher's Run was 
liis first battle, and he did not show the 
white feather, though he was in the com- 
pany of veterans. He acquitted himself 
with great gallantry and received the com- 
pliments of his officers. Toward the close 
of the war he was put on guard duty, but 
saw active service in the pursuit of the rebel 
Genera] Lee to Appomattox. He was hon- 
orably mustered out of the service June 9. 
[865. lie now draws a pension of eight 
dollars per month for his sufferings in that 
dreadful conflict. After the war he returned 
home and began to work on the farm and 
continued thus for three years. On Feb- 
ruary 29, (872, be was united in marriage 
with Mi^s Mary, daughter of Joseph and 
Elizabeth (Lowder) Stumpff, the marriage 
occurring at White Pigeon, Michigan. Mrs. 
Foreman was born January 31, [848, in 
Union county, Pennsylvania, and was 
reared and educated in that state, being edu- 
cated in the German as well as the English 
languages. Her parents, who arc now de 
ceased, were both natives of the Keystone 
state, though her great-grandfather came 



from Germany. To this marriage two chil- 
dren were born: Joseph E., born August 
10, [876, who is unmarried, attended school 
until he was qualified to teach and at this 
time has taught five terms, his education 
being finished at the Indianapolis Business 
College in 1899; Sarah E., born November 
28, [878, became the wife of Albert Prem- 
bley, now deceased, and the mother of two 
children. William McKinley and Mary Opal. 
She later married Jacob Hatfeld and they 
had one child. Clarence. She passed away 
April 15, 1901. Mr. Foreman is now in 
comfortable circumstances. He deals exten- 
sively in stock and has made much money 
from his good judgment of hogs and cattle. 
He is a warm Republican and does a great 
deal to assist his party in the campaigns. 
He and his wife are members of the Lu- 
theran church and both are among the most 
estimable citizens of this portion of the 
county. 



GEORGE BRUNER. 

If you gather apples in the sunshine, or 
make hay, or hoe corn and then retire within 
doors and shut your eyes and press them 
with your band you shall still see apples 
hanging in the bright light, with boughs and 
leaves thereto, or the tasseled grass or the 
corn flags. The impressions lie on the re- 
tentive organ, though yon know it not. So 
lies the whole series of natural images with 
which your life has made you acquainted, 
in your memory, though you know it not, 
and a thrill of passion flashes light on their 
dark chamber and the active power seizes 
instantly the fit image, as the word of its 
momentary thought. All of us are wise. 



410 



COUI'EXPIL'M OF BKn.K.U'IIV 



The difference between persons is not in wis- 
dom, but in art. Every intellect is mainly 
prospective. Its present value is it- 
It is a little seed. Every truth that you 
acquire is a lantern which you instantly turn 
full "ii what facts and thoughts lay already 
in your mind, and all the mats and rubbish 
which have littered your literary garret 
come bright and precious. The family to 
which this sketch refer- are fully alive to 
the bright things of this world. They can 
k beyond the dross and see the gold shin- 
ning in the world of mind. It has been the 
fixed policj of the subject t.> give his chil- 
dren something more than an education se- 
cured at the common schools. In this age 
necessary, unless you want your chil- 
dhoppers all their lives, t" lit 
for the higher duties which an ad- 
vanced age will place upon their shoulders. 
George Bruner is the son of Benjamin 
and Elizabeth (Eberwine) Bruner, and was 
born in Stark county, Ohio, May 9, 1847. 
He was 1 rought t" Dekalb county, Indiana. 
.:1» ut the year 1S54 and there grew up < mi 
l.i- father's farm. Possessing a tine mind 
naturally, hut not being blessed with a 
education, he made up his mind long 

ee that his children fared better than 
he did in the si He became acquainted 

with Mi-- Catherine Lower and in clue time 
asked her t" become his wife, which she 
promised to do, and they were accordingly 
married on February 8, 1874. She was 
September 23, [854, and received in 
youth a fair education. To this marriage 
the following children were born: Jesse, 
\pril 29, 1 S 7 5 . who is yet unmarried. 
completed the common-school branches and 
later attended the normal - 
full) fitting himself for teaching. i< now the 



principal of the Burket public schools; Viola, 
hc.rn September u. 1877, who also fitted 

f for teaching and attended the m>r- 

both at Men tone and at Warsaw, is 
now the wife of William Cook and lives in 
Seward township; Justin, horn March 24, 
1878, wh<> likewise prepared himself for the 
profession of teaching and attended the nor- 
mal school at Angola, i> now teaching in 
this town-hip: Maude, horn April IO, 
who became the wife of Lewi- Tucker and 

- i-.i Burket; Gertrude, who died 
nearly t'ne year-; Charles, born July 8. 1884; 
Lucile, horn November [3, 1887. Mr. 
Bruner after his marriage rented land for 
about eighteen year- before he could get 
much ahead. He finally bought seventy-six 

of George Irvin in iNi>_> and there he 
has since lived. He i- a Republican, and 
though he does not take an active part in 
politics yet nevertheless never fails !■■ vote 
for his party's candidate-. He and hi- j 
wife are both adherent- of the Methodist 
Episcopal church, and both are widely 
known and universally respected. l'licy 
have a tine family of intellectual children ami 
take great interest in their success in life. 
\'o people of the count\ stand higher in the 
estimation of their n< than do the 

members of this family. 



K ) 1 1 X BRUNER. 



[t is the pride of the »fthiscoun- 

try that when the I ivil war between 

the states closed, all the vast arm) of citizen 

ery quietly laid down their arms and 

returned to their homes and the art- ••! 

I: was predicted bj the governments 






COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



41! 



of Europe, not only that the country would 
be divided, but that after the war an enor- 
mous army would be kept up and a military 
dictatorship would be established on the 
Fragments, perhaps in what had been every 
state. But foreign nations did not under- 
stand the spirit that animated the breasts of 
the American people. They themselves 

st 1 ready to pounce upon the fragments 

en the smoke of war should roll away. 
But instead of a disrupted country they be- 
held a splendid sight. The}" saw the gre u 
armies melt away, saw a reunited country 
in which liberty was a fact as well as a name 
and saw the buys in blue return to their 
wives, farms and shops. The subject of this 
sketch was one of those boys in blue, lie 
was born in Stark county, Ohio, January 3. 
[842, and is the son of Benjamin and Eliza- 
beth ( Ebenwine ) Bruner. The father was 
a native <>f Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, 
and was oi Germanic descent. Subject's 
grandmother on bis mother's side was born 
in Germany and came to this country after 
she was married, crossing the ocean on a 
sailing vessel and not seeing land tor nine 
months. These people settled in the Key- 
Sb ne state and followed the occupation of 
farming. When the father of subject was a 
young man he came to Stark county. Ohio. 
He was reared as a farmer and selected that 
as bis avocation through life. He had a fair 
education both in German and in English. 
Subject's mother also came to Stark county. 
1 >hio, when she was a young woman. There 
the parents met and were married about the 
year [838. To them were born six chil- 
dren: Mary became the wife of Samuel 
Wiltrout and lived in Goshen, but both are 
now deceased; John, the subject, is the sec- 
ond in the family; Samuel, who married and 

25 



resides in Nebraska, was a soldier in the 
Rebellion and served for the period of about 
six months; George married Catherine 
Lower and lives in this township; Benjamin 
wedded Miss Clemmons and Hves in Ne- 
braska ; Susanna become the wife of David 
Huffman and is now deceased. Benjamin 
Bruner. the father, moved from Ohio to De- 
kalb count}', Indiana, in 1854, where he 
bought a farm and lived until 1874, when 
he purchased a tract of eighty acres in this 
township on section 2 and there continued to 
live until his death in [893. His wife pre- 
ceded him to the grave, dying in iojij. The 
father was a strong Republican, a good 
farmer, a useful citizen and an honest man. 
John Bruner passed bis youth on his fa- 
ther's farm anil concluded to make that bis 
occupation through life. At the age of 
twenty years he enlisted in Company A. 
Eig-hty-eighth Indiana Infantry, under Capt. 
E. B. Cutter. After some time • spent in 
camp of instruction he was sent with his 
regiment to Louisville, Kentucky, and first 
saw service at the battle of Perryville. Sub 
ject suffered greatly from disease and was 
discharged at Gallatin, Tennessee, and sent 
home to recuperate. Late in [863 he re- 
turned to his regiment and participated in 
the Atlanta campaigns, being present at 
nearly all of the battles and showing splen- 
did spirit ami gallantry. He was also in 
the famous "march to the sea." and also in 
the campaign of the Carolinas, fighting al- 
most constantly for man} days. He made 
an excellent record for bravery and at the 
conclusion of the war returned to his home. 
He was mustered out at Louisville, Ken- 
tucky, July 15, [865. Fortunately be was 
not even wounded, lb' now draws a pen- 
sion of fourteen dollars per month. After 



4'- 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



the war he worked on the farm by the 

h, and in August, 1868, he wedded 

Miss Sarah J. Bell, and to them two chil- 

dren were born; Man R., who became the 

ard Winters and r< 
Seward town- i therine, who married 
Alfred Bartholomew and lives in Elkhart. 
His first wife died in [874, and he later 
married Miss Mary J., daughter of Henry 
and Man (Deeds) Keller. She has borne 
him five children: Alice J., born April 11. 
1S77, became the wife of Archie Franks .and 
111 Waterloo, Indiana; David E., born 
October 8, 1879, resides with his father: 
Lulu M.. born September 5, 1882, i- unmar- 
and lives at home; William E., born 
April 25, [885, lives at home. Mr. Bruner 
i- a Republican and i- prominent and useful 
in tlu- councils of his party. Mr. and Mrs. 
Bruner are members of the Methodist 
church of Burket, he being at pi 
if the trustees of the church and par- 
sonage at Burket. He 1- a member of Kos- 
ciusko Post, G. \. I\ . at Warsaw, and at 
mie time was a member of the Independent 
Order of Odd Fellows at Waterloo. He is 
an excellenl specimen of the representative 
American cit 



PRI IF. J. W. S\\ ICK. 

In one "i tl all call- 

iined 
distinction, b< f the 

t \ < • i 
well educati 
metricallj developed man. his work 
educator having brought him prominently 
t • > th( public, the result of 



which i- a demand for hi- services where 
mdard of professional excellence 
is required. I gentleman of scholarly 

and studious habits, keeps abreast the 
in advance; nal methods and 

leral km is broad and compre- 

hensive. In connection with teaching, he 
is engaged in agricultural pun 1 his 

beautiful farm in Seward township i- one 
ittractivi 
3 d homes in the community. 
Mr. Swick's ancesl ime t<> the 

United States from the romantic little coun- 
try <■!' Switzerland. Hi- paternal grandfa- 
ther, William Swick. was born in Pennsyl- 
vania, but early went to < Ihio, where In 
and married. Mary Shoup, who w; 

scent. They lived f< 
"ii a farm in the nd appear to 

Ijeen fairly successful in their worldly 
affairs. Thinking to better his condition in 
the new and fertile region of northern In- 
diana, whither a number of his fellow citi- 
had preceded him. William Swick in 
led hi- household effect- on a 
1 drawn by a yoke of oxen, and. driv- 
ing his live st'>ek ahead, made the journey 
i" Kosciusko county, consuming over eight 
days before reaching his destination. He 
purchased a place in Seward township, near 
Beaver Dam lake, ami by industry and -lic- 
it soon become one of the 
in that part of the country, 
mfortable competence 
and I of the most valuable farm- in 

ril. hut later in life lost ll 1 

ing tn unwise 
advice and befriei e who pi 

;.' their <>l>1;„ lew men in the 

abo\ known ■ 

espected a- William Swick. ' 






C0MPEXP1CM OF BIOGRAPHY 



4i3 



ami gentlemanly in demeanor ami the em- 
bodiment of hospitality, lie became popular 
with all win) knew him ami his death was 
an event greatly deplored in the community. 
He ami his good wife died on the farm 
which .Mr. Swick originally purchased ami 
their memories will always he cherished by 
their descendants and others who were for- 
tunate enough to form their acquaintance. 
To William and Alary Swick were horn 
eleven children, all of whom are living. It 
is certainly an unusual if not a remarkable 
fact tn find so large a family from which 
death has not claimed at least one victim. 
It is also worthy of note that the sons and 
daughters are all well situated in life and 
stand high in the confidence and esteem of 
the respective communities in which they 
live. Among the sons was Henry Swick. 
who was born and reared in Ohio. He was 
a young man when the family moved to 
Kosciusko county and he remained under 
the parental roof, assisting his lather on the 
farm until his marriage, which was solem- 
nized in 1868, with Miss Elizabeth Keller. 
David Keller, father of Mrs. Swick. was a 
native of Pennsylvania. When a young 
man he went to Ohio, where he married 
Susan Malot, and in 1845 came to Indiana, 
being among the early settlers of the county 
of Kosciusko. Mr. and Mrs. Keller experi- 
enced their full share of the hardships and 
vicissitudes of pioneer life and have lived 
to see the country redeemed from its wilder- 
ness state tn a very garden of beauty and 
plenty where prosperity abounds and happi- 
ness and contenl reign supreme. They are 
now deceased. Besides Mrs. Swick they 
had five other children, one of whom died in 
infancy. 

Henry and Elizabeth Swick's marriage 



has been blessed with six children, one dy- 
ing in infancy and four suns and one daugh- 
ter living. Among the sons is the gentle- 
man whose name forms the caption of this 
review. J. VV. Swick was born in Franklin 
township, Kosciusko county, Indiana. July 
18, [869, he being the oldest of the six 
children constituting his father's family. 
His early life was spent on the farm and 
the genial influence of nature in her many 
various moods had much to do in forming 
his character and shaping his life. Reared 
to farm labor, he knew not the meaning 1 E 
idleness in a practical sense, and, being the 
oldest sun, upon his shoulders fell main of 
the duties and responsibilities of running the 
place and assisting to maintain the family. 
When old enough he entered the public 
schools, which he attended of winter sea- 
sons until completing the prescribed course 
of study. He was graduated with an hon- 
orable record in 1887. after which he at- 
tended several normal terms with the object 
in view of becoming a teacher. 

From early boyhood Mr. Swick mani- 
fested a decided taste for hunks and his 
studious habits while in school -nun enabled 
him tu outstep bis classmates. He made 
rapid progress and, Lilly appreciating the 
value of scholastic training and the advant- 
age to be derived from it. he pursued the 
higher branches of learning with the same 
zeal that marked his course in the lower de- 
partments. Added to this was a laudable 
ambition to make his education subserve a 
wise purpose from a business poinl oi view; 
accordingly in [889 he successfully pa 
the required examination and obtained a 
license entitling him to teach in thi 

scl Is of Kosciusko county. Mr. Swick 

taught his first term that year and has 



4' ; 



MPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



work t" the present time, 

ith a lai | - and, 

a the reputation 

of one "i the pable and popular in- 

struct nty noted for the high pru- 

the fall and wintei 
■1 room, giving his attention tin 
mainder "f the year t" his farm, which is 

every eviden 
high cultivation and thrift. 

Mr. Swick has been married twice tiie 
in 1892 to Mr-. Malinda Summe, 
n uni 

m the 3d day of Januarj, 

and bore her husband a son and a daughter, 
ling his mother t" the other 
Id by a little more than one year. In 
398 Mr. Swick entered into the 
man tion with Miss I mine. 

,1 nati E md and cousin of hi> 

former companion. S , "it to 

try by her parents when tl 
nd grew n> maturity in K coun- 

ty, r< n in the com- 

mon schi 5 nted Iter hns- 

band one child, a daughter, Fay, 

•ice adds the brightni 

the home. 

Mr. Swick has earned considerable re- 
pute as a raiser of high grade stock, from 
of which a liberal income i- de- 
rived. He is - man and in 

capacity of teacher and 

culturist rned a reputation which 

- him among the enterprising and pro- 

:itizens of the township of Seward. 

Hi- home, within less than a mile of the 

itiful littli 1 t water known as 

er Dam lake, is a well-known 



Pet man of pleas 

.1 in manner and coi 

i 
chara him popular with 

Mr. Sw ick 
er and thinker, i- well inform* g neral 

topics and spi 
in touch with the trend of modern 

it events, he has 
well denned opinions upon political, 
and kindic 
nor inclinations I 
permitted him to become an active pari 
much -.rant for public honors, 

oting the Democratic ticket 

mictions, he take- little interest in par' 

Mr. Sw ick is an he n f< mvard 

1 his 5 nscientii 

farmer and educator and it is 
with ; that this brief synopsis of his 

life and tribute to his worth as factor in the 
affair- of Kosciusko counl en a place 

in this volun 



LEVI II. EATON. 



The people who constitute the bone and 
sinew of this country are not those who 
are unstable and unsettled, who fly from this 
occupation to that, who d<> not know hew 
in vote until they are told, and who take 
rtive and intelligent interest in affairs 
affecting their schools, churches and prop- 
erty. The backbone of this countn is 1 
up of the families which have made their 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



415 



homes, who are alive to the best interests 
of the community in which they reside, who 
are so honest that it is no trouble for their 
neighbors to know it. and who attend to 
their own business and are too busy to at- 
tend to that of others, who work on steadil) 
from day to day taking the sunshine with 
the storm and who rear a tine family to a 
comfortable home and an honest life. Such 
people are always welcome in any country 
and in any community. They are wealth 
producers and this country is blessed with 
many of them, among which is that of the 
subject 1 if this -ketch. • 

Levi II. Eaton was born in Wayne coun- 
ty, Indiana. August 1 1. 1843, an, l > s tne son 
of Caleb and Martha t Hartup) Eaton. The 
Eaton family are of English descent and 
came from .Maryland, where they lived as 
far back as they can he traced in this coun- 
try. The Hartup family are from Germany 
originally. Upon reaching early manh 1 

Eaton concluded to visit the great 
west, and accordingly came to Indiana about 
the year 1837. He there worked out until 
he was twenty-one years old, and about this 
time was united in marriage with Miss 
Martha Hartup. To this marriage thirteen 
children were born, as follows: Henry, 
Levi II.. William, James, Miner. Sarah. 
[thomas, tsaac, John. Alonzo, Elizabeth, 
.Martha J. and Lewi-. Sarah. Elizabeth 
and John are deceased. All the others live 
in this county except Isaac, who 1 
Fulton county. Caleb Eaton came 
Wayne count} to Kosciusko county in [846, 
when the country was wild and the woods 

with big tree-- I Ie rented land in 
this township, near Beaver Dam, and after- 
ward entered fort} acre- from the govern- 
ment in Seward township and part of the 



farm now occupied by John Jones. After 
living on this farm eight years he sold it 
and bought eight}' acre- a mile east, where 
his widow now lives. He died in the spring 
• '\ 1870. He and his wife for many years 
were consistent members of the Methodist 
Episcopal church, and both were people of 
undoubted respectability and worth. Levi 
H. was reared in this count}', being only 
three years of age when he was brought here 
by his parents. He remained on his father's 
farm until he had attained the age of eight- 
een years. At the commencement of the 
Rebellion he enlisted in Company C, Fifty- 
seventh Indiana Regiment, for three years, 
and was mustered in at Richmond. Indiana. 
The\ went into camp at Indianapolis, where 
Mr. Eaton was taken clown with the measles 
and losl his speech and was discharged from 
the service. He returned and worked on \ 
farm for two years, and then enlisted again 
in the One Hundred and Thirty-second In- 
diana. Regiment in the one-hundred 
service. His service was mainly guard duty 
and at the end of his term he was honor- 
ably mustered out. He returned and b 

irk on the farm, continuing until [869. 
Me then was united in marriage with Miss 
Sarah E., daughter of John Lewi-, a pioneer 
of this county. To this marriage three 
dren were born : John E., born in February, 
[872, who is an instructor in music: the 
second child died in infancy; Jennie A.. 
born August 12, [876, became the wifi 
Frank Lyons and live- at Silver Lake, her 
husband being in the liver}' business there. 
Mr. Eati hi i- 1 'lie 

of this part of the o lunti . He is a ] >emocrat 
and served his township as trustee for live 
years. He takes much interest in his party's 
success, and is the Democratic lead- 






COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



i tins part of I t) . I le and 

if by all who 
within the bounds of their acquaint- 
ance. Mi i niembei Meth- 
ipal church. 



ill U*LES M. TUCKER. 

it 

th. like a Vanderbilt. but it is 

gh man} 

did nam* 

m t" duty and In 

that 
■ the tun i- 

i 
ird of 
And 

wild< i and carved n 

from the prii 

nd mothers win the 

with the 

■ 

ehind them a 
.\n and a princi| 

c up and call them 
This 1 

nemoir. 
nd Albert Tucker 
in this volume. ) 

- horn in Franklin 
township, this county. July io, [870, and is 
if the distinguisl • 



settler. Albert Tucker, lie w 

the important 
d ~t"ck raising and farn 
I le finished his 

if Mentone. I le had 
I For farming and stock raising and 
ment of his father tin 
far from uninviting. I le 
•Id do I" as^i-t in 1,., 

make 

mnt) . and one hundn 

int\ I le ii ther's 

and know > how i" 11 
•l money. 1 1 
much ii 
count rnment. ( >n March 3 1. 

11 M. I.i'. 

;i in t!" 
Apri 

le follov 
'i'ii Janu 
mmy V 
. . I... born Januai 

. born Man darv. 

I 
"ft' 

lew \ v 
11 now I from two hundn 

hundred head of cattle. His 1 

le and 1 
>pondingly large, and. barring 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



417 



bad luck, he is bound to accumulate an im- 
mense fortune. He lakes time from his 
many duties to cultivate the newspapers and 
books of the day and is thus a well-read 
man. He takes much interest in the affairs 
of his party, the Republican, and is himself 
in line for the best offices within the gift 
of the people. Business men are the ones 
to place in charge of the affairs of the couri 
ty, instead of in the hands of men who have 
made a failure of business and wish to draw- 
sustenance from the public crib. He is 
young, intelligent, full of ambition, honest 
and clean and is bound to make his mark in 
any held of human endeavor. 



JOHN" II. SHOUP. 

Notwithstanding the fact that the repub- 
lic of Switzerland is one of the smallest 
countries of the world, it has sent a large 
number of settlers to the United States dur- 
ing the years that have elapsed since inde- 
pendence was secured. The people of that 
country, appreciating the blessings of liberty 
of which they had a bright example in their 
native land, were nol slow to recognize the 
possibilities that opened out in sph 
perspective before all emigrants who should 
locate early in this country. Accordingly, 
large numbers of Swiss have emigrated and 
now constitute some of our best and most 
moral communities. Of this thrifty and 
freedom-loving people came the subject of 
this sketch. lie was born in Aaronsburg, 
Pennsylvania, February 7. [839, and is the 
son of George VV. and Catherine (Cramer) 
Shoup. The Shoup ancestor emigrated 
from Switzerland about five generations ago, 



just after the Revolutionary war, and set- 
tled in Lancaster count), Pennsylvania, the 
emigrant of the name being Henry Shoup. 
He became an extensive land owner ami 
farmer of Lancaster count}-, and was the 
father of five sons, who. as they reached ma- 
turity, branched out for themselves over the 
West. One of these sons was named John, 
who had a son named Henry, who moved 
to Union county, Pennsylvania. The latter 
married Miss Mary Reasor ami followed 
the occupation of farming, becoming 
wealthy. The)- had two sons and three 
daughters, as follows: Christian. Hannah, 
Mary, one who became the wife of William 
I Ionian, and George \\\. the father of sub- 
ject. When George W. was a young man 
he moved from Union count) to Center 
county, Pennsylvania, ami settled at Aarons- 
burg, there learning the trade of millwright- 
illg and engineering. lie married Catherine 
Cramer, as before stated. She was the 
daughter of John and Elizabeth 1 < )rend< >rf 1 
Cramer, and her grandparents were emi- 
grants from Prussia to Center count}-. They 
were very earl)- settlers there and became 
wealthy, being large land owners. 'I 11 1 
children likewise scattered out over the coun- 
try and became Useful citizens of their 
adopted country. To the marriagi 
George W. and Catherine Shoup the fol- 
lowing children were born: John 11.. the 
subject of this memoir: Samuel married 
.Miss Lena Warner and resides in Cre 
1 ihi< 1, and is engaged in the milling 
ness; William, who entered the Union army 
in [862 and after a splendid fighting <■■ >rd 
was killed during the Vicksburg campaign; 
Charles enlisted in the One Hundred and 
Second ( )hio Volunteer Infantry under Col- 
onel Given, and became the colonel's private 



4iS 



COMPEXPIL'M OF BIOGRAPHY. 



etary. In one of the movements he « 
captured and liel<l as a prisoner of war t 

months. At the end of the war he em- 
barked wit! thousand other troops 
mi board the steamer Sultana to l."' up tl 
Mississippi river and when that ill-fated boat 
. up he was the hundreds that 
were killed or drowned; Caroline became 
ivife of Guy Gilbert and resides in Port- 
land, Indiana, her husband being a livery- 
man; Sarah J. married Jesse Cochran and 
Iive> in the state of < (regon. 
moved from Center county, Pennsylvania, 
t . \\ ayne counl ;, O • ' ght 
if land near I After a time 
he sold out and moved to Burbank, Ohio, 
where later he lived a retired life. He w 
a pi ilitician in the old \\ I 
party, and upon the formation of the Re 

n part) joined it afterw; 

worked Republicanism. 

He was in church affairs as in 

itics and was a man of the hig ir- 

. e half 
what he had to the church. He died in 
advanced in ye. 
: of all. John 1 1. Shoup 
red mainly in the Ki nd 

ned the business of milling. When he 
was about i 1 he came with 

family to Wayne county, « Hiio. 
His education was obtained mainly in 
Pennsylvania and bj the time he w 
teei 'Id. with no other 

than v 1 in tl 

comnv n 
lie thereupon ent< 
Aai idem) and took a t\\ 

'.■led to hi^ stocl 
kno and to his culture. Upon com- 

lied for a teachei 



tificate. which, nted, and under it he 

• o immon scl r three 

saved up a considerable sum of mo 
Wish ;till further improve his 

cation, he then took Idwin 

University, at Bet 

cial branches that would best tit him for his 
e life — mathematics and the Eng 

In 1864 he was united in mar- 
with Miss Rebecca I Law rein. 

1, daughter of Martin 
vrence. her birth having 
occurred April 17. 1842. To this .mart 

children wire horn: Mary A., 
( tctoher 4, i& ' the Wi 

- iw with her 
brother and is in the millinery husi- 

1... Iiorn January 2 

Warsaw 
l, he ha\ ing more 
an any 

Mich- 

i'ld is 

Hammond. Indi- 
I'.. born July 17 
from the Warsaw 1 with the 

. and two 11 
uation he nsylvania rail 

_cnt. later 

■ 
Khun and by her 

■ 

"ii and 
lier fatli • . born N"ov« 

Meiltoii, 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



419 



school and resides with her parents. In 
February, 1873, ^' r - Shoup moved with his 
family to Kosciusko county, Indiana, and 
located at Warsaw, and there bought the old 
brick mill in partnership with S. VV. Old- 
father. They erected a new brick building, 
which still stands. In June, 1898. he 
bought his present plant at Mentone from 
Albert Tucker, and associated with him X. 
L. Yates, who had been in his employ sev- 
eral years. Air. Shoup has been successful 
in his milling operations, and has always 
stood high in the community where he has 
resided. He is a Republican, is greatly in- 
terested in politics and served Warsaw as 
councilman. In 1871 he joined Lake City 
Lodge, No. 379, A. F. & A. M., at War- 
saw. He and wife are members of the 
Methodist Episcopal church, in which he has 
been a Sunday-school teacher for many 
years, and he was also assistant superintend- 
ent at \\ arsaw. Xo people stand higher 
in the esteem of the general public and be- 
cause of this many fine persona] qualities 
have won for themselves a large circle of 
warm friend-. 



THOMAS BALL. 

It is a lucky thing in this world of ours 
that when health fails on one account or an- 
other man is not confined to one occupation, 
but 1- at liberty to pursue some business in 
keeping with his changed and cramped con- 
dition. It thus occurred with the subject of 
this -ketch that when his health failed him. 
or began to fail him, he turned his atten- 
tion to a pursuit less confining and more in 
keeping with liis altered condition. The fact 
that this could be done is one of the most 



important circumstances connected with our 
industrial system. It has really come to 
pass that a man or a woman may be a hope- 
less cripple and still be able to make a for- 
tune in this world's goods or reach the high- 
est pinnacle in the temple of fame. But he 
must have the head. After all, it is brain 
that count- in this world. The brain that 
can execute as well as plan is the one that 
will achieve the greatest triumph. It thus 
comes about that Mr. Ball is one of the 
leaders in this portion of the county. He 
was born in Wayne county. Indiana, Feb- 
ruary 3. 1827. and is thus one of the oldest 
citizens as well as one of the most promi- 
nent and useful men. His parents were 
William D. and Margaret (Widner) Ball, 
a sketch of whom will he found elsew 
in this volume. Thomas grew up on the 
farm and while engaged in that necessary 
occupation received a fair education at the 
country schools and learned all the intricate 
problems of farming and stock raising, and 
helped to clear oft' the heavy timber which 
covered the land. In early manhood he met 
.Mi-- Ovand E. Bright and soon afterward 
they were married, a fact very important to 
Mr. Ball.' She was the daughter of David 
and Fanny Bright and a woman who pos- 
sessed mi ire than the ordinary grace- be 
-t iwed upon the daughters of IX e. In ad- 
dition to tin- it may lie truthfully -aid that 
she had not a little to do with the future 
-I'ccc-- of her husband. Their marriage 
occurred on the [8th of February, [848, 
the i-sue of this marriage i- one daughter, 
Martha ).. horn September t6, [850 The 
daughter wa- given a good education and 
otherwise qualified for pure and intelligent 
womanb 1. She taught school in Kosci- 
usko count} for two term- terward 



420 



COMPENDIUM OF Bh>uR.irilY. 



inited in the holy bonds of matrii 
with Warren i ). Herendeen, t.ikini^ up her 
residence in Silver Lake, Indiana. By him 
she became the mother of ten children, -i\ 
sons and four daughters. Mr. Herendeen 
having died, she married Allen Bybe 
now it Men tone. When Mr 

he owned forty aci 
land, all covered with heavy woods. This 
1 and fully improved. During this 
time his health failed, and. being 
splendid animal, the 
all lir '.'1 he. he 

erinary science his future busi- 
jularly to 
study the >f the 

tit himself fully for the pro- 
u. As lie had mastered the 

m to practice and \\ as 
lined, 
him to ti 
rounding counti< - 
As a n 

all opposition i" him has 
I [e 
enty- 
I le enlisted for military 
ivil war. but wi 
nut of di ■ ision. 

an ar lent Republican and ictive 

and prominent part in politics. I!< 
honored with election 

shown his fitness and • 
i it\ .llr consecutive 

Vliship :i nielli' 

<o, 79, 1 & \. M . : 
imong I membei - 

of ih . m. I le is known i 

when highly respected by all pei 

n 1 Mr-. Ball have in their p 



two vahii 5 in the si 

parchment «h> I 1841 and signed by 

lent John Tyler, ami one dated 1*47. 



WILLIAM I" N'EAL. 

This worth) representative of two ster- 
families i< one 1 f the 1 
farmers and citizens of Jackson 
ti >\\ nship ami for a numl 

ed much more than local rep; 
an earnest, able and faithful minister of the 
German Baptist church; Originally the 
- came from Smith Carolina, in which 
•he rem 
tied in a very earlj day, coming 
try from the Emerald I- 
certain memlx unily migrated t'> 

Miami county, Ohio, where William F. 
the subject's father, was I 
and where, in I 
1 the ma 
Lucinda Milh Millii >ns wei 

Miami ind a 

number of 1 1 ■ ■ 
• 

carioi 

» 

Willi im l 
farmer and was a mai 
in the community where nearly all of h 
it. After his man 
ijt of the "M Xeal hoi in Miami 

county and continu cupy the same the 

remainder of his life, dying with the 
and esteem of all who knew him. lie was 
liildren, whosi 
nda, Phoebe, Matilda. 
William I", ami Patrick If. 




/tcJu^^n^ y? • syZ€^C- 




MRS. WM. F. NEAL 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



4-' 



William F. Meal, whose name forms the 
caption of this review, was born in Miami 
county, Ohio, on the 15th day of April, 
[841. lie grew to manhood on the old 
home farm and remained with his father 
until twenty-three years of age. meanwhile 
'hiring his minority enjoying such educa- 
tional advantages as the common schools af- 
forded. In his twenty-third year he was 
united in marriage to Miss Margaret Jen- 
kines. whose father. David Jenkines, a de- 
scendant of an old and highly respected 
South Carolina family, was for forty con- 
secutive years a justice of the peace in the 
county of Miami. He was also a man oi 
considerable local prominence, intelligent 
nd the average and during the greater 
part of .his life was a potent factor in the 
public affairs of his part of the stale. To 
Mr. and Mrs. Xeal were born three chil- 
dren, the oldest nf win mi, Elmer EC., mar- 
ried Rose Leek, win 1 died March 1. 1902, 
and at this time he lives in Milford, Indi- 
ana: he has three children. Clara A.. Charles 
I and Isaac H. ; Mary F... the second, died 
August 27, [885, and the youngest, whose 
name was John O., departed this life in the 
year [872. The mother of these children 
was a woman of sterling worth and her 
death, in < Icti 'her, 1S7 1 . was an evenl great- 
ly deplored, not only 1>\ her family and im- 
mediate friends, but by a large number of 
iicquaintances who had learned to prize her 
for her sweel mural nature and the whole- 
some influence which she exerted upon all 
with whom she came in contact. Mr. Meal's 
secoud marriage was solemnized June 30, 
1872, with Mi-- Magdalene Harshman, who 
has borne him children as follow-.: Effie 
M.. Elsworth, Stella. Etta and Elsie. Stella 
• lied October 28, [897, and Etta is now 



taking: high school work. Mrs. Xeal was 
born in Frederick county, Maryland, April 
25, 1843, ;uu l ' s a daughter of Jacob and 
Mary A. (Ellis) Harshman. She was one 
of eight children, four sons and four daugh- 
ters, of whom two suns and two daughters 
are still living. The Harshman family he- 
came residents of Jay county in an early day, 
but the parents died in Ohio. 

In [88] Mr. Xeal disposed of his inter- 
ests in his native state and came to Kosci- 
usko county, Indiana, purchasing one hun- 
dred and seventy-five acre- of land, which 
ci institutes his present farm in the township 
of Jackson. Here he has since lived, actively 
engaged in the pursuit of agriculture and 
meeting with the financial success with 
which such thrift and well directed energies 
a.s his are usually rewarded. In many re- 
spects lie i- a tin "lei farmer, his place bear- 
ing every evidence of advanced tillage, while 
his residence, barns and outbuildings indi- 
cate the presence of a man of modern ideas 
and methods and who displays sound judg- 
ment and guild taste in the management of 
lis affairs. He is now one of the leading 
agriculturists of hi- section of the county 
and by industry and intelligent consecutive 
effort ha- accumulated a sufficiency of 
worldly wealth in place himself and family 
in comfortable, if not independent, circum- 
stance-. 

A number of years ago Mr. Xeal united 
with the German Baptisl church and in [.878 
was officially sel apart by his brethren to the 
work 1 'f the mini-try. From that time in 
the present he ha- preached at man) dif 
ferenl points and a- a public servant oi the 

church has accomplished much g 1 by his 

clear and able presentation of the gospel, in- 
ducing many to abandon the ways of sin and 



C0MPEXDIUS1 OF BIOGRAPHY. 



. the way t" a better life here, ;m<l ev< 
happiness in the life to come. As 
an evangelist he is greath devoted to 
work and his services arc in much demand 
by his brethren in this and other counties of 
Indiana. For a number of year- Mr. X. 

■ 1 with tin- Republican party, but of late 
ha- given little attention t-> matters political, 
although keeping himself well informed 
upon ti questions now before the 

American people. X" citizen of Jackson 
township i- held in higher respect or enjoys 
more fully the confidence of the public. An 
honest man. an honorable citizen, an humble. 
pious, hut able minister of the gospel 
Christ, his life ha- been consecrated to the 

id of his kind and the future awaits him 
w ith li< lunteous rewai 

extract, referring to the 
' the subject, is here ap- 
pend* 

\ i u . Ill Ui. I 

iv. [ndiai imption, 

months and iw< orn in Mia 

. 
hool wort i 

I 

"Whithei I go tho but 



ELDER SAMUEL LECKR< 'XI". 

r piety . moi 
rity, activity or industry in the work 

• church, all tend toward true hap; 
in this world and a hopeful confidence in the 
life t 
• if tiie-e invaluable \ irtui 

. of I .ake t' iwn- 



ship, Kosciusko county, Indiana, and . 
of Daniel and Sarah (Shrider) Leckt 
born in Terry county, < >hio, Apr 
1848. His father was a native of Lan< 
county, Pennsylvania, was 
traction, and wax taken when a bo 
by his parents. «•] ' in Perrj county. 

He \'. -i a backwoods farm and 

ut few opportunities for an education, 
hut had plenty of hard work and became a 

g 1 farmer. The Shrider family also emi- 

I from Pennsylvania to I >'ii' 1 am 
tied near the Leckrones, and thus Daniel 
Leckrone and Sarah Shrider became 
quainted. They were married in Perry 
f'nnty March 15. 1S47. the result being 
twelve children. \ i/ : Samuel. Lemuel. 
Alva. Mary, 
I), Almeda, Sarah K. Benjamin, 
e, l.amira and John S 
uel, Lemuel and Aha reside in Lake town- 
ship. Kosciusko county. Mr. Leckrone. the 
father of this family, still resides in Hope- 
well township. Perry county, ' >hio, he in his 
seventy-fifth year, hut his wife 
life March jj. 1902, aged al enty- 

four extract being here 

reprinted tally apropos in this con- 

ion. 

- 

nd two 
month! Mri-n- 

set n -.'ns .mil i 

■ ( hurcb, Indiana, 
hren chun 
a faithful sister in tin- church ov< • 

■ 

iuel 1 xckn ted on the home 

. w hen he 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



423 



went out to work as a farm hand by the 
month. After he had paid for his necessar) 
clothing he dutifully delivered to his father 
the remainder af his wages, and so con- 
tinued to do until within six m mths of be- 
coming of age. After that he retained his 
earnings and continued to work out until 
twenty-twi 1 years old. 

( Ictober 23, [870, Samuel Leckrone was 
joined in the holy bonds of matrimony with 
Miss Alary Hendricks, a daughter of Solo 
mon and Lydia 1 Stoner) Hendricks, natives 
of Ohio. Mary Hendricks was but nine 
days old when her mother died, and the 
babe was reared, by her maternal grandmoth- 
er, who gave her a common-school educa- 
tion. Mr. Leckrone was not possessed oi a 
great deal oi cash when married, so he 
rented a farm from his father-in-law in 
Kni >x county, on which he and wife lived 
about four years. In September, [874,'with 
his wife and little ones, he came to Kosci- 
usko cpunty, Indiana, and purchased sev- 
en! y-six acres of land in the southern cor- 
ner of Lake township, mi which, with the 
exception of the barn, lie has erected all the 
buildings, and here he still resides. 

It is the custom of the German Baptist 
church, to which Air. Leckrone is si > de- 
votedly attached, t< ► place a member of the 
congregation on trial as helper, and when 
that member has proven his worthiness and 
capability t«i advance him in the dignity and 
office nf minister. August 24, 1870, Mr. 
Leckrone was put to this ordeal, and after 
his people became fully satisfied as tn his 
piety and understanding he was advanced 
tn the sacred degree in the ministry August 
1 1. [879, and has since performed its func- 
tions in the most satisfactory manner 1 < ■ ail 
concerned. This office confers upon the in- 



cumbent the right tn administer baptism, 
solemnize marriage and break bread at com- 
munion. December -'4. [881, Elder Leek 
rone was advanced tn the full ministry and 
now has charge of three churches, one ..t 
Beaver Dam, one at Roann ( Wabash coun- 
ty) and line in Jackson township, and he 
also preaches at other places voluntarily or 
by request. 

In Samuel and Mary ( Hendricks 1 
Leckrone six children have been granted to 
bless their earthly existence. Of these the 
eldest, Charles, who was born August 25, 
[871, passed through the common schools 
and attended North Manchester College; lie 
then taught school two years, after which 
he attended Mount Morriss (Illinois) Col- 
lege, from which he was graduated in the 
class of 1894 and then taught school two 
terms in Kosciusko count)'. He next en- 
tered the Indiana State Normal School, 
from which he was graduated in the class 
of [897; was then appointed principal of 
the Brownsburg (Indiana) school, which 
he taught two years ; then entered the State 
University at Bloomirtgton and was grad- 
uated in 1900. He attended the State L'ni- 
versit) at Ann Arbor, Michigan, after which 
lie took a post-graduate course at the Chi 
cago University. He is now professor of 
Latin in the Warsaw ( Indiana ) high school. 
He wedded, June iK. [901, at Brownsburg, 
indiana. Mis- Ethel Chine Free. She has 
an advanced education and was a teacher in 
Hendricks county. Indiana. Lizzie, the sec 
ond child horn to Rev. Samuel Leckrone, 
was born March 21, 1874. and is the wife 
of Gilbert Hartsong, of Lake township. 
.Martha, who was born in January, [878. 
attended college at North Manchester. 
Cora, bom August 1. iSS_>. graduated from 



424 



!PEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



tin.- commoi in 1901 Lina, 1» >rn 

1885, also graduated from the 
100] 111 [901, and i- now attend- 
North Manchesti Samuel 11.. 
the you 1 the family, was born in 
March, 1 : 

1\V\ Mr Leckrone, the father of t 
children, holds a very high position in the 
esteem of the citizens of Wabash and k 
ciusko counties, and his wife and children 
share with him the respect which is paid t.» 
him. He takes no part in politics and ha- 
• voted. 



HENRY L. OLDFATHER. 

The great 1 1 aring the land of its 

timber in earl) years can scarcely be realized 
by the people of today. Nol a crop could 
an m>r an orchard tree planted until 
d been cut down and re- 
el with tire or \\ ith a team of hi 
Even then the stumps were a great hindrance 
and it is doubtful if so much as half a 
could be raised until they had been pulled 
r bum up. The amount of hard labor 
required t" remove the timber Imost 

incredible. It was a ta-k that seemed never 
t" end, and all members of the family were 
required t>> assist early and late and at all 
ms of the year. The subject of this 
-ketch had his full share of this work, lie 
born in Wabash county, Indiana. May 
-;_•. and is the son of Adam and 1 
l Berger > < Hdfather. Both families 
of Germanic descent, l>nt came dii 
from Pennsylvania, where the ancesl 

■ many y< . jrand- 

r alter In- marriage removed t" Mont- 
1 Ihii 1, and n 1 him w en 



seven sons ami two daughters. I 

t'V he 1 >\ er -ever - 1 -. hut 
neither re .\ sin- 

gular fact i- that they died in the ordi 
their hirths. Adam < Hdfather upon n 
ing maturity married Miss Berger and they 
became the parents of these children: 
anna, who wedded Andrew Knoop and 
in Clay township, her husbai 

d; Sarah, the vvifei f Daniel Bolin, 
in lllim ii-; Samuel l\. who married Miss 
Libbie M< and now at North 

Manchester, Indiana, served as a pi 

er for eight months in the war of the 
una. win 1 became the w il 
George Leffel. lives in North Manch< 
1 lenrx I... subject: Melissa, who mat 
Tin una- A. I ut. :;i Seward town- 

ship; John F. f wh<i married Ellen Ohmart, 
in Silver Lake. Indiana: Irene B., who 
wedded Edward Beyer, live- in Rochi 

na. Adam Old father emigrated to 
Kosciusko county in 1852 and entered a tract 
eminent land, all in the deep woods. 
This farm he cleared and improved with the 
help of hi- family, lie wa- a pioneer in fact 
and a. m. erling qualities. Tin 

et of this 
article, but it wa- met with courage, indus- 
ind time worked won- 
lle wa- a quiet man. hut. like the 
quiet stream of water, he ran deep and wide. 
After a long life he tinallv passed awav in 
August, [893, but his widow 1- vet living 
and - enty- 

four years. The subject i>t" tin- memoir was 
I on the farm and early learned the 
ng of the words "hard work." He se- 
cured ' education and in early man- 
Jit school in the country districts 
. exhibiting I powers 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



4^5 



of government. One of his pupils became a 
noted divine in the Methodist Episcopal 
church, due, of course, to the excellent in- 
struction given by Mr. Oldfather. In [875 
he wedded Miss Flotilla Loop, who was born 
January 28, 1852, her parents having been 
early settlers of Ohio. One child blessed 
this union, Iva. born February 14. 1879. 
Siie is an accomplished young lady, both 
in schooling and in music. She married 
Harry \Y. Cline, a teacher of this county, 
and lives in Seward township. Mr. Old- 
lather is a member of Lodge No. 164, K. 
of !'.. at Silver Lake. He has for five years 
past been engaged in shipping stock. He 
served as secretary of the Farmers' Mutual 
Insurance Association for nineteen vears and 
did a vast amount to render the association 
useful and successful. He was largely in- 
strumental in making it one of the strongest 
companies in the state. He is a Republican 
and at one time was the candidate of his 
party for county commissioner. He is well 
and favorably known throughout the coun- 
ty and is one of its leading and substantial 
men. Mr. Oldfather is keenly interested in 
the formation of a telephone Company, un- 
der the name of the People's .Mutual Tele- 
phone Company of Kosciusko county. The 
officers of the ci impany are as f< »lli >ws : Presi- 
dent. I lcnr\ L. Oldfather; secretary. Sam- 
uel 1!. Mora; treasurer, Harry W. Cline; 
on the hoard of directors there are iv addi- 
tion to the gentlemen named, Ephraim 
Wells. Arthur Smith and Owen F. Brown. 
The company is incorporated and is cap- 
italized at ten thousand dollars, Mr. Old- 
father ha- in hi^ possession a valuable relic 
in the shape of an old parchment deed. 
dated Augusl io, [837, and signed 1>\ Presi- 
dent Martin Van Buren. 



WILLIAM BAKER. 

This well-known citizen is an excellent 
representative of the better class of farmers 
of the United States, lie comes from an 
ancestry that distinguished itself in the pi 
neer times. When the county was covered 
with an almost interminable forest of large 
trees and the woods tilled with wild animals 
his people came here and began to carve 
from the primeval forests, build schools and 
churches, and introduce the customs of civ- 
ilization in the wilderness. They were gen- 
uine pioneers, willing to take the hardships 
that they might acquire the soil and the 
home that were sure to rise. Subject was 
born in Harrison township, this county, 
January X, 1855, and is the child of Abraham 
and Lethy (Huffman) Baker. The father 
was a native of Richland county, Ohio, and 
came to this county in 1847. A.S this was 
before the time of railroads, be walked the 
entire distance of two hundred miles, and 
brought with him five hundred dollars in 
cash which be had earned by day labor in 
Ohio. He bought one hundred and sixty 
acres of government land for two dollars 
and a half per acre, but as he was not ready 
vet to begin clearing the timber from the 
same he hired out for the winter of [847-8 
to clear off timber for another man in Wa- 
bash count)'. The follow ins; summer, how- 
ever, he began to clear on his own place in 
earnest. On March _>_>. 1849, ' ie n ' as unite ' 
in marriage with Miss Lethy Huffman, sif- 
ter of George L. Huffman, and immediately 
moved upon his land and began the task of 
clearing the same. It was covered with 
dense woods, hut life was before them and 
time was long and s, , they steadily took the 
sunshine with the storm and built up in the 






F BIOuR.-U'liy 



ipy hom< re he 

the present day. I [e is 

and his long life has 
■ 
■II- >r. He i- known far and 
and ■ a reproachful word 

- attended 
own bn 
me two hundred acre- of timber 
lli • iwned 

hundred and twenty aire-, worth from 
fifty He was 

g\ but when threat- 

ened to crush the union of thi 

ife died June 
20. [869, and hi ifd wedded Bar- 

■ 
the first wife, S imuel, 

ied Miss 
I; Mahala, who the wii 

in Fulton county, In 
ina, who 
wedded Ira Wertenl ind livi 

Franl vnship: Mary, who marrieil 

II, who died, and she then mar-. 
:i Tucker and now lives in Men 
- san, who became the wife of Will- 
iam I'.. ! 'i Fulton county; 
Matilda, who wedded Joshua Garwood and 
es in Harrison township : Andrew, who 
died in infancy. 

Because of surrounding circun 
William Baker • 1 i < I not compli 
training, but he remedied this detect in after 
life very greath by exten 1 le 

farming as his occupation thi 

he became older he began to 

ss in his farming operation-. 

Whe ined his majority he rented the 

;i<l continued to thus 

f sevei 



During that I I a considerable 

sum of money for himself ' >n Januai 

I lannah Latimer, 
L\ man Latimer, 
and I ion were horn three children: 

orn July I, >w in the 

ind two children 
that died in infancy. At the time of his 
he had . about three thou- 

sand dollars and had bought sixty-two 

i farm, lie now owns one hun- 
dred and sixteen and one-half »f the 
all well improved. He has one 
of the finest hank barns in tl f the 
county, and built the same in 1899. All the 

- of the basement are cement. 
in the horse stable. The who', 
ally i- an excellent example of modern farm 
improvement and refli it credit 

nterprise and advanced ideas of Mr. 
I laker. He r 

and hogs, and sells many < 
making no little money from this bran 
g neral farmer he is 
-fi:l. I li- life has been 

tilled with g 1 action-, and the world is 

f( r his having lived. He is a strong 

Republican, but is not an seeker, 

Sfli he would grace any office within the 

gift of his neig He is well known an 1 

wi ,rd i- as g 1 as a bond. 



^BRIEL LTLREY. 

brie] I'Irey. a farmer and 

11 township, also a minister of the 
German Baptist church, is a native of Mont- 
gomery count). < )hio. and son of Joseph and 
Swihart) Ulrey. The family 
g nal 1 ierman st 




GA3RIEL ULRSY FAMILY GROUP 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



427 



"Ulrich." The subject was born December 
26, (839, and when a little over four years 
old was brought to Kosciusko county, Indi- 
ana, where he has since lived and prospered. 
He grew to maturity on a farm and received 
his preliminary education in subscription 
schools taught principally by Andrew 
Whistler. Gabriel Swihart, Jr., Gabriel Swi- 
hart. St., and his own father, Joseph Ul- 
rey. who were among the earliest peda- 
gogues of Jackson township. By making 
the most of his opportunities he obtained a 
fair knowledge of such branches as were 
then taught and also became familiar with 
the German language, which he learned to 
read ami write with ease and fluency. After 
reaching his majority he attended school at 
Warsaw two years and then obtained a 
teacher's license and in the winter of 1 So 1 
taught his first term in the public schools if 
Kosciusko county. With the exception of 
"lie vear. the winter of 1871-72, he was en- 
gaged in educational work from 1S01 to 
1X70 inclusive, meanwhile attending nor- 
mal schools and institutes for the purpose 
of increasing his efficiency as an instructor. 
During the time that he was thus engaged 
.Mr. Ulrey earned an enviable reputation as 
a teacher and Iris long retention in the same 
district was a compliment to his ability and 
attested the high esteem in which he was 
held by both patrons and pupils. In 1876 he 
gave up teaching and turned his attention 
to agricultural pursuits, moving in the 
spring of that year to the farm in Jackson 
township on which be has since lived. On 
the 8th day of May. 1862, he was united in 
marriage to Miss Mary Ann Kreiter, daugh- 
ter of Henry and Rosa A. ( Kasler) Kreiter, 
who came !■> Kosciusko county from Ohio 
in the year [848. Mrs. Ulrey was born July 

26 



-/• Io 43' ni Stark count). Ohio, ami since 
her fifth year has lived in the county of Kos- 
ciusko. There were eight children born to 
! Icnry and Rosa Kreiter. five sons and three 
d.anghters. Of these there are hut four liv- 
ing, Mrs. Ulrey ami three brothers. Of the 
latter Samuel is married and is a resident of 
Los Angeles count}-. California; Monroe K. 
resides in the old Kreiter home in Lake 
township, this county, while the third 
brother is married and lives at Cambridge, 
Nebraska. Mr. and Mrs. Ulrey are the par- 

lv isa, wife ot 
una, wi fe 



ents of eight children, viz : 



A. 



Wurtenberger, of Kansas ; A 



of Jacob X. Miller, of Jackson township; 
Lizzie married Jacob A. Metzger, also a resi- 
dent of Jackson township; Alice is the wife 
of Albert Miller, a farmer of the same town- 
ship; Mattie, who became the wile of Sam- 
uel X. Hawley. lives in California; Asa 
wedded, March 12, [902, Miss Edna Shir- 
ley, of Kosciusko county; Alpheus married 
Cora Ross and carried on farming in the 
township of Jackson ; and Ella, now Mrs. E. 
P. bridle, lives with her father on the home 
place. 

Mr. Ulrey has been a thrifty farmer 
and is now well situated financially. With 
the exception of some small assistance 
his own and wife's parents, he has made 
the comfortable fortune which is now his 
and is entitled to much credit for the suc- 
cessful manner with which he has concluded 
his business affairs. In the spring of [864 
he was elected trustee of Jackson township 
and served as such by re-election until [867, 

lischarging the duties -1 I he iffice in an able 
and praiseworthy manner. I [is second elec- 
tion was without op] act which 
speaks well for his standing with the people 

ii" mg h It ni. irrespect i\ e of party affilia 






COMPENDIUM WGRAPHY. 



lion, eld in the hi. steem. In 

1891 the aiul wife took a three 

months' trip to the Pacific coast and speak 
very highly ountry. 

.Mr. L'lri-N 1- a valuable man in the com- 
munity ami his judgment and clear i- 
in iii business have caused him to 

tained by his neighbors 1 1 • adjust mat- 
which without his assistance might 
have led t" expensive litigation. He has 
served as administrator on some valuable 
estate-, among which may l>e cited that of 

nit. which, representing over four- 

isanc! dollars, has been settled to the 

entin tion of all parties concerned. 

In April. 1 Si ■(!. he united with the German 

inch. ni" which communion he has 

i a faithful and consistent member, 
looking with the deepest interest after the 
affairs of the local congregation to which 
he belongs ami bj a blameless life. 1 
crated to the service of God and his ;■ 
men. exerting a wholesome influence in the 
community where he lives. < (ctober 1 1. 
he was made a deacon of the church and in 
November following his brethren set him 
apart t" the work of ministry. Subsequent- 
ly, December 24, 1881, lie was advanced 
tn the second if his holy office, 

while not regularly engaged as a pastor, he 

|uired 
am! ' implished much good by his 

public ministries. 1 lis .' , , be- 

le church and with himsel 
sidered a 
members. The building in which 

■ 
ground donated by t' father fur 

church and burial purposes, 

■ ■ t< 1 all who desire to lmr\ 
rein, and the house open to all de- 



nominations i''r funej In pul- 

a stanch Republican. As 

a citizen none occupies a mure conspicuous 

in the < i- of the public and as 

a neighbor In- en loved ami hon- 

I by the people of his township. 



J< MIX M WAINWRIGHT. 

Among rt 1 if the county 

who have built up a highly creditable repu- 
tation and have disl i thems 
i>\ right and honorable living is the subject 
1 if this brief memoir. His prominem 

ffairs of the community i- conceded 
and hi- <\>,\-']^ will speak fur themselves. 
Some men speak loudest by talking volubly 
and frequently, while others speak lo 
by their actions. The subject of this notice 
is able t" express himself well when talking 
■led. and is also well qualified to carry 
into execution his thoughts. He is one of 
- in this community 
where there are mam men of sound 
and ripe judgment. He has shown his 

for official honors after many 
spent in the publii and he is willing 

that his record should speak fur him. He 
was Uirn in Union county, Indiana. 
ruary 14. [862, ami i- the - harles W. 

and Sarah 1 Kin- 1 Waimvright. 
YYainwright family cam< My from 

inia. where Isaac, the grandfather, was 
born and brought up. The latter movi 
I nil m county. Indiana, in 1830, when the 
country was yet a wildei I he Ring 

family have lived in this state many y< 

iming here when the country was 
Thev first lived in Madison county, 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



429 



and afterward in Union county, where the 
two families intermingled. The father and 
mother were married in 1859 and in [865 
they removed to Miami county. Indiana, 
where the father bought a saw -mill near 
Gilead, which he operated for a number of 
years, making money steadily and rapidly. 
Unfortunately he was accidentally burned 
out, the loss falling upon him with crushing 
force, a- he had no insurance. In 1869 he 
came to this county and located near Sevas- 
topol, and in [870 he moved into Seward 
township and located near Yellow Creek 
lake. He took the job of digging a 
big ditch running from this lake and by 
go I management and hard work made .1 
snug sum of money, sufficient in fact t'i 
partly if not wholly reimburse him for 
hi- previous loss, in 1872 he removed 
to Palestine and engaged in the pump and 
well business, and continued thus until the 
time of his death in 1893. He was a Re- 
publican in his political affiliations, and as 
such was elected justice of the peace and was 
serving as such at the time of his death. 
He was an active member of the Methodist 
Episcopal church and served a number of 
years ;i s Sunday-school superintendent. He 
was an excellent example of the high-minded 
Christian citizen. I lis life was rilled with 
action, but through all he ever retained his 
excellent standing and won the respect and 
confidence of his neighbors. His widow 
still survives him, in her sixty-second year, 
and resides with her son John in Palestine. 
To their marriage there were bum two sons, 
i 'hi M. and William H. The latter was 
in [863 and upon attaining manhood 
was united in marriage with Miss Effie Mil- 
ler and resides in Warsaw, Indiana. 

John M. W'ainw right was a boy of ten 



years when his father mined to Palestine 
Me attended the local school until he was 
sixteen years old. going to school in the 
winters and working on the property of his 
lather in the summers. When he was six- 
teen he was so well advanced that he re- 
ceived a certificate to teach, but owing to 
his immature years he did not essay the role 
of a teacher. Upon reaching the age of 
twenty-one years he engaged in the pump 
and well business with his father under the 
firm name of W'ainw right & Son, and a 
little later they added cement and sewer pipe 
to their other commodities. Upon the death 
of the father the business was managed, by 
subject until 1894, at which date he bought 
the present business and has since done a 
thriving trade. 

On December 24. 1884. the subject was 
united in marriage with Miss Mary E., 
daughter of E. W. and Hannah Uplinger, 
of this county, but formerly of Penn-vl- 
vania, whose birth occurred Jul)' 19. [865. 
Mrs. Wainwright received a good educa- 
tion in her girlhood and finished by attend- 
ing the high school at Warsaw for two 
years. She secured a teacher's certificate 
and taught for some time in the schools oi 
this county. To her marriage with subject 
there have been born these children: \ allie 
B., born July 31. 1880. graduated in the 
class of 1902 in the common schools; Carl 
A., born August 2^, [89] ; Charles \\\. born 
May 22, [898; M. Ruby, born May 6, 1900. 
Upon the death of his father Mr. Wain- 
wright was appointed to till out the unex- 
pired term as justice of the peace, and so 
well did he give satisfaction that he was 
re-elected and has served down to the pres- 
ent time. During the administration . of 
President Harrison he was appointed posi 



• 



IPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



tine, and was again ap- 
pointed by President McKinley. He is 
in politics and wields great influence 
in' the councils of his party. He h 

- and as a memb 

ntral committee and i- a leader 

among men. He is a member of Camp No. 

3525, M. \V. A., Forest Lodge, No. 46, K. 

of P., and of Warsav No. 83, I < ». 

Iv M.. and he and his good wife are mem- 

e Methodist Episcopal church. He 

superintendent of the Sabbath 

ears and hi served 

a- trustee of the church for eighl 

county cannot boast of a better citizen 



TIH )M \S J. ( ' ILBER 

In the first the 

settlers came from all - of the : 

1 there being represented by its 
md m« >st adventurous pi Manj 

from Pennsylvania and many from 
New England. 1 Hd Virginia 
many, nearly all of whom had been pa- 
wners and gave up that institution 
from motives of principle. Immedi 

lution there was little 

if excepl to build up homes and 

fortunes, bul about I >i the 

teenth century and continuing until the 

ureal Rebellion, the fight against 

one of the principal n 
gration of many of the ; 1 
lo the free northwest. Among the families 
which left thai state at an earl) d 
a home north ' >hio river w 

r of the 

1 Tiffin, ■ 



ployment as -cutter, which 

le. I le was tpjite .1 boy when he 
Tiffin, but he went to work and soon ma 
a name for himself. 1 le became a prominenl 

rie canal, bujldinj 
under contr otherwise assisting that 

at improvement. He finally met his 
death at Lagro. Indiana. William. 

r, upon reaching manhood met and mar- 
1 hristina I [ill, her family be 
cut and natives of tl 
state. The Hills moved t" Sew 
count) . 1 early day, and tin 

William and Christina met. They moved to 
sko county, Indiana, in 1839 and 
town-hip. or what i- iv i\\ L 
township, where he entered from 1' . 
eminent one hundred and sixt) ai 

w Hand. Not long after this William 1 

bert went to his death. To his man- 
two children were born in Ohio. Jesse, who 
married Miss Emma Smith in the 

■ -•• of his country, serving three y« 
and died from : ts of his - fter 

his return home, and Thomas I . the 
After the death of William, his widow mar- 
Bradley, and as young Thoi 
uld not full) 1 all thing- with 

-tcp-f.v left home when he was fif- 

and started out in the world 
to do for himself. One of the first thit 
he did was to secure a contract for 
■Inch, and a little later he became 
in on the road. 1 1. I in \ av- 

er things and made mot • 

to put his money int 
and thus he steadily grew in the m< 
this world I le 1- now tin 

farm-, one of one hundred 
unty and a smal 
\11 this v 



COMFEXPICM OF BIOGRAPHY 



43i 



shrewd management and hard work. Al- 
though he started as a poor boy, he has ac- 
quired a good property and has made a fine 
success. He was born at Tiffin, ( )hio, April 
29, [838, and his early life was spent in the 

w Is. The education he received was very 

meager, for he had to work hard in clearing 
the trees and stumps from his father's farm. 
When lie was thrown on his own resources 
by the unfortunate death of his father, he 
was obliged to forego all further schooling". 
hut he has in later years managed to add 
much to his former deficiency b) constant 
leading. lie is now one of the leaders in 
• his portii hi i if the county. He pi tssessed the 
qualities which attract friends and retain 
them, and he has always been benefited by 
his friendships, for it was found by all that 
he could be implicitly trusted, lie was mar- 
ried December 25, [858, to Miss Rebecca, 
daughter of David Pontious, who was a na- 
tive of Virginia, and to this union five chil- 
dren were horn, as follows: William E., 
who married Miss May Price and resides in 
Marshall county; Ola A., who wedded Scott 
Lawrence and lives in Wabash county; 
David, who married in Ohio and lives in 
Miami county; James W., unmarried ; John, 
who ited in business with his father 

in a general store at Silver Lake. Recently 
.Mr. Colberl traded for a stock of goods a.1 
Silver Lake and is at present engaged in 

ig his g Is for cash or good credit. 

lleh cellent trade and the entire con- 

fidence of the community. His stock con- 
sists of dry-goods, boots, groceries and 
clothing. lie is a Democrat and is the 
party's most active worker in tin- part of 
the count v. He is a member of Lodge No. 
576, I. 6. * ). P.. of Silver Lake, and has 
represented his lodge in the grand lodge 



He and his wife are members of the United 
Brethren church, and he is one of the sub- 
stantial and reliable citizens of the countv. 



SAMUEL J. CARR. 

It is at all times very interesting to com- 
pile and preserve the experiences of the old 
soldiers who went out to tight the country's 
battles during the slaveholders' rebellion 
forty years ago. These gallant old fellows 
are fast passing away, and we should gel all 
of their experiences first hand, before they 
pass away, and leave on record. It is im- 
portant that we preserve these personal ex- 
periences, for after all those are the events 
which make history. What would history 
he worth were it not for the vivid actions of 
the individuals? That is all there is to the 
splendid histories of ancient and modern 
times. The story a- told by one who passed 
through the bloody experiences of four years 
of struggle and was in numerous battles, 
marches, campaigns, and. perhaps, prisons 
and hospitals, is far more interesting than if 
narrated long hence by some writer who 
may distort events out of their true historic 
significance. The subject of this notice was 
horn in Cincinnati. Ohio, -May 1 1. [845, and 
is the child of John and Edna (Scowden) 
Carr. The Carr family came originally 
from Ireland and settled in Virginia, hut 
when John was a \, ung man he went to 
Kentucky and served for a number of years 
as pilot on the rivers in that section of the 
country. This occupation he continued un- 
til the. time of hi- death. The Scowdens 
were formerly from Pennsylvania, but 
to Cincinnati at an early day. and there the 



432 



COMPE.XPILWI OF BIOGRAPHY. 



father and mother of subject met and were 
married, the ceremony occurring in l 
ber, [838. To this marriage two children 
born. Alice, h rn in July. 1X4. 

il education in Lane's Young 
Ladies' Seminary, of Cincinnati, and became 
the wife of William B. Dunbar, of Mount 
on, Ohio. The latter was a printer by 
and became a lieutenant in the 
Hundred and Twenty-first Ohio Volunteer 
Infantry, during the Rebellion, lie p 

thrilling sen ices, and was quite 

severely wounded at the I>1 ly batt 

Chickama -: his par- 

ents when he was a small boy, and he was 
taken tised by his grandfather, Mrs. 

- iwden. Thus be was provided 
for until he was fifteen years old, receiving 
i' mi. and was then taken by his 
R. Scowden, who \ 
civil engineer, and worked t'<>r him during 

The grand 11 
ha\ i- I to Ripley county, Indiana, he 

remained with her until the spring <>f 1861, 

• enlisted in the Union armj in 1 
pany C, Thirteenth Regiment, Indiana 
unteer Infantry, and was mustered in at In- 
dianapolis, June 19, 1861. After a time 
spent in camp of instruction, he was sent to 
the held and first 1 the enerm at Ri< h 

Mountain, Virginia. After that 
at Green Brier in October, t86i, B 
Mountain, December, 1861, Wincln 
March. iNf.j. helping to defeat Stonewall 
skirmishes and batt '■ 
t. and in one of ments 

\ ereh hurt and was sent t 1 
pital. In September. [863, he joined his 
m and was present at 
the - nd battle of the same name. 

■ me his • 



pi red, but he enlisted again and aftei 
furlough joined his regiment at Jackson- 
ville, Florida, lie was sent north and was 

in the many hi ly battles of the Richmond 

and surround Bermuda 

Hundred. I •'. riu. Chi 

Cold Harbor. Deep Bottom, Chapman's 
harm. Fort Fisher and on t" the surre 
For gallantry in battle he was pron 
first to corporal, and then t<. tirst lieutenant, 
the latter being made May 1. [865. and the 
commission being signed by l 

I'. Morton. I le was mustered 1 
Goldsboro, N'orth Carolina, it S 
1865, having served over four years. He 
participated in more than thirty different en- 

n<\ was in many arcl 
marches and harassing campaigns. He 
afterward drew a pension ,,f twe' 1 
for his disabilities. \ft<r the war he was 
employed in the tire department at N'ashville, 
Tenni >\ eminent, and lat 

ille until August, r868, when he 
came to N T orth Manchester. Indiana. 

tarried Miss Jennie Klime. He 
went west in [869 and worked on the 1 

tilroad. but the same year returned 
to Indiana and here he remained until his 
To this marriage two children were 
l>orn, nd a daughter, the • 

the daughter, was bom 
ell educated and niar- 
1 ' 1 merchant of I li 

1 ■ ig Repul 

er at Silver I 
p]x>intment June 1. 1901, from '' 
McKinle) I le was a mi • ■• 1'"-' 

\. R., and His splendid war ree- 
■ '. as well known u> all his asso 

_ • ■• ■ 
- in this part of the county, and one of 



COMPEXDIi'M OP BIOGRAPHY 



433 



the most prominent citizens. Mr. Carr de- 
parted tiiis life 'Hi the 7th of June, 1902, 
and his funeral was conducted by the Grand 
Arm) 1 if the Republic. 



GIVEN K. SMITH. 

Fort) years ago, when the slaveholders' 
rebellion broke out with all its fury at Fort 
Sumter and when it looked as if the Union 
that all loved so much would he dissolved, 
several members of the family to which the 
subject belongs enlisted to save the federa- 
tion of the states, even though they had to 
free the slaves in order to do so. It was 
a time when there could be no temporizing 
and ii" halting. — no half-way position, — 
for all who were in it for the Union were 
against it. and both sides hated the man 
whi 1 claimed t. > he neutral because he did not 
want to risk his skin on the field of battle 
and had no principles to sustain. The mem- 
bers of this family were alive to the gravity 
of the national conflict, and realized that the 
struggle impending was something more 
than a holiday undertaking ami knew that 
it meant great hardship and the shedding ol 
rivers of blood before the Hag could again 
wave from Maine to Florida and from 
Florida to California. But they did not 
hesitate, be it said to their everlasting re- 
in i\vn. 

Given EC. Smith is the son of Frank anrl 
Margaret (Holmes) Smith, and was born 
in Rockbridge count}. Virginia, June 19. 
[838. The Smiths of which he is a worthy 

esentative were natives 1 if that state, an-! 
of English descent, and were members of 
what became famous in history as the "first 



families" of Virginia. These people were 
famous for their hospitality, their tine man- 
ners, the beauty of their women and the 
gallantry of their men, and for their skill 
in statecraft. Through this particular fam- 
ily ran a trace of Irish blood, sufficient to 
sharpen their wits and cause them to be will- 
in- to fight at any and all times to main- 
tain their rights and liberties. The Holmes 
family were also of the same blood and pos- 
sessed the same indomitable characteristics, 
The blending of these two admirable ele- 
ments had an excellent result in the off- 
spring, as is shown in the lives of the subject 
of this sketch and his brothers. Frank and 
Margaret Smith removed t 1 Miami county, 
Ohio, where they engaged in farming and 
stock raising. To them nine children were 
born, as follows: William, Jeannette, Caro- 
line, John. James. Henry, Given K., sub- 
ject, Frank and Samuel. William. John. 
James and Henry are deceased. They and 
subject served, as before stated, in the Union 
army during the Rebellion, and the family 
should be known by all as the "Soldier 
Family" by reason of their splendid service. 
John particularly distinguished himself and 
\\a> promoted to a captaincy, while the 
others, in a less conspicuous way, were also 
famed for their gallantry on the field, their 
intense loyalty and their hardihood on the 
march and in the hospitals. When to the 
above are added the names of Frank and 
Samuel, it will be found that there were 
seven boys of this splendid family to assist 
Uncle Sam in maintaining bis political life. 
Subject enlisted in Company lb Fiftieth 
( )hio Volunteer Infantry, and was mustered 
in August r, [862. After a brief period in 
camp of instruction he was sent to Ken- 
tucky' an 1 there saw his 1 ■ 1 in arms 



434 



COMPENDIUM OF BI( 'CR.ll'ilV. 



and smelled his first gunpowder. lit- wa- 
ged at Perryville in August, 186: 
ircely knew how to march straight, Inn 
owed his pluck under fire and did not 
i [e h i v wounded at Smoky 

Hollow, an<l was discharged for disability 
after having served honorably and gallantly 
for about twi ut all this 

bloody warfare he was ever ready for the 
fray, and was always ready and anxio 

enemy a deadly blow. Alter his 

. < he returned home and resumed 

the work of the farm. A little later he was 

united in marriage with Miss Anna I 

a native of < >hio and of Germanic descent. 

em five children were born, as 
Ella, who became the wife of Charles Yates 
and lives in Paducah, Kentucky; Alice, who 
married Samuel Doutts, resides in Warsaw, 

... who wedded Law relic. 
derhill, li ke; Myrtle, who 

became the wife of Charles Pearston, lives 
.hart: Earl C. i- unmarried and lives 
chart. In [8 ibject moved 

lUtlty, Indiana, thei 
iusko county in 1887. I le firsl w 

the Lake Shore & Mic 
Southern Railroad, and later bought a small 
''arm v\ est of Silver l.ake. and on the same 
lived until the death of his wife in June. 
1898, when he came to town. Hi- splendid 
rd makes him a 

He is a member 1 if I '. isi 
\. k.. at Silver 

I-'. He is 
mcmlver of tile Mi 
in which and in ii- Sunday school 1 . 

ker. I le is an uncompro- 
mising Republican a; ctive member 



of his party. He i- prominent in the affairs 
of the township and the county, and the 
not possess a better citizen. 



MRS. R \rilLL ROCKHILL. 

the amiable and p 
ular lady whose name head- this -ketch most 
happily illustrates what may he attained by 
faithful and continued effort in carrying 
-. It is a story of a life n 
measured by it- usefulness — a life 
that has made the world better and brighter. 
Her career ha- been dignified ami womanly. 
her manner unafl and her action-. 

springing from a heart charged wit!; 

good feeling for humanity, have been t 
• all who were within the rai i| 
her influence. She i- a representative <-i one 
of the pioneer fan northern Indiana, 

and for many years was the wife of ,. 

usko county's mosl worth) and honor- 
citizens. 
Rachael Teegarden, daught< 
and Sarah 1 Tee' 1 Teegarden, was born in 
Columbiana count on the jj<1 day 

of Jul). [832. Her paternal grandfather. 
a native of Germany, came to die United 
State- ! many 

• county, Pennsylvania, where his 
born and reared. 

fanner 
and when E 1 married Sarah 

■ 'in 1 iermany 
and in an early day settled in the county and 

nail) lo- 
cated. 1 1. ricultural put 
in ( in ntv and continue' there 




<^^2^, ^^^/ 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



435 



till he came to Columbiana county, Ohio. 
He later disposed of his possessions in that 
county and migrated to Kosciusko county, 
Indiana, about 1851, settling' in the township 
of Harrison. Here he purchased land, 
cleared a farm and became one of the sub- 
stantial and enterprising men of his commu- 
nity. He was a pronounced Methodist in 
his religions views and as long as he lived 
worked zealously to establish organizations 
of that faith in various parts of the country. 
His moral character was pure and clear, his 
influence was always exercised in behalf of 
the good of his kind and he left to his chil- 
dren a name and fame which the tongue of 
slander never attacked and which today are 
deemed of far greater worth than a heritage 
1 if lands and gold. 

George and Sarah Teegarden had nine 
children, whose names are Eliza. Lavica, 
Solomon, • Thomas, Moses, William, Jere- 
miah. George and Rachael. 

Rachael spent her childhood days and 
youthful years amid the bracing airs of the 
countr\ and grew to womanhood among the 
beautiful rural scenes of her native county 
of Columbiana and the newer county of 
Kosciusko, ["he influence which close com- 
munion with nature in its varied loveliness 
had upon her youthful character was very 
marked and the early religious impressions 
made upon her mind and heart by the teach- 
ings "I godly parents had a decided ten 
dency in moulding' her life for good and 
shaping her destiny towards high ideals. In 
ommon schools she received a fair edu- 
cation and while attending them made ac- 
quaintances and formed ties which time has 
111 1 dimmed nor circumstances severed. She 
grew up strong and healthful in body and 
mind and was early taughl the lessons of in- 



dustry and thrift which have had such a 
marked influence upon her subsequent ca- 
reer as a maiden and matron. 

< )n the 7th day of April, 1853. two years 
after coming' to Indiana, she was happily 
married to Air. Aaron Rockhill, a young- 
gentleman of blameless character, whose ar- 
rival in Kosciusko county antedated that of 
her father's family about one year. He also 
settled in Harrison township, but purchased 
an eighty-acre farm 1 >ne mile west of Etna 
Green, Marshall county, and it was on this 
place that the young c< iuple set up their 
domestic establishment and began married 
life. Mr. Rockhill was a man of much more 
than ordinary energy and but few years 
elapsed before he began adding to his orig- 
inal purchase. He possessed sound judg- 
ment and superior business abilities, and as 
a farmer took high rank among his neigh- 
bors, nearly all of whom looked upon him 
as a model agriculturist and regarded him 
with favor as a man of broad intelligence 
and a leader in enterprises for the general 
prosperity of the community. He continued 
from time to time to purchase real estate un- 
til he became the owner < if tw o hundred acres 
of as rich and valuable land as northern In- 
diana could boast of. part of which la\ in 
Kosciusko county and part just across the 
line in the county of Marshall. He was 
very fortunate in all of hi- business trans- 
actions and everything in which he engaged 
seemed to prosper. l'.\ successful mat 
merit and continual industry he acquired 
quite a respectable fortune, his real estate 
alone representing a value of over twelve 
th lusand dollars. 

Mrs. Rockhill proved an able and valu- 
able assj-tant to her husband in the labor oi 
clearing the farm, and deemed it not be- 






COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



iieath her womanly dignity t" go into the 
ml gather and pile brush and attend 
to firing the I".lc heaps. She also made a 
full hand in tin- harvesting and haymaking, 
at tin- same time looking after her household 
affairs with the most scrupulous care, never 
inestic duty. Always 
cheerful and kindly disposed, she labored by 
ide of her husband ami made the time 
merrily while engaged in the 
\ ere and < '• >il. Much of the SU 

which Mr. Rockhill attained is directly at- 
tributable i" the willingness and self-sacri- 

mpanion, and when the b 
da) of prosperity finally dawrn shared 

with him its welcome rays and together they 
enjoyed the ample fortune which in the end 
crowned their mutual efforts. 

Mrs. lv ckhill bore her husband six chil- 
dren: Anna, bom April [9, [854, is the 
wife of Henn Plummer and lives in Etna 
Greet im February 7. 1858, mar- 

ried Amanda Beck and resides in Mar-hail 
cunty: Nathan I-'., whose birth occurred 
June .}. [861, married Minnie Porter and 
is a business man of Plymouth; Solomon 
born June 16, 1863, and died October 
10, 1893: Homer, horn October _'a. 1866, 
married Lillian Hayherst and resides in the 
town of Knox, this state; Nora, tl 
est of the family, was horn on the 28th day 
"f • (ctober, i Xr She became the wife of 
William Wissler, who died Februan 21, 
. Inch time -he ha- li\ ed w ith 
Iter mother in Etna ' ireen. 

In hi- political affiliations Aaron Rock- 
hill wa- a Republican, later a Prohibitionist, 
and in religion he v ealous member 

il church. 1 1' 
ive in 1 work ami for t 

it) -live year- held the 



>S leader, besides til'' 
important official positions in the church 
at Etna Green. To him religion wa- seem- 
i- essential as the food he ate and the 
air he breathed: he wa- Student 

the Holy Scripture- and by living a life con- 
secrated to the service of the M 
wa- inspired t" noble I ac- 

tivities in his life and amply prepare 

the King in Hi- beauty and behold the 
land that is afar off" when the time came 
to exchange the church militant for the 
church triumphant. 1 le was 
a just one and when the final summons came. 
November 7. [899, he fearlessly entered the 
valley of shadows, cheered by the pres 
of I Mm who i> the "resurrection and the 
life." 

Since her husband's death Mr-. Ri ckhill 
has manifested tine bus 1 the 

management of the large estate and 
looks carefull) after the interests left in her 
charge. In the year 1890 Mr. and Mrs. 
Rockhill turned the farm over to other hands 
and retired from active life, purchasit 
neat and comfortable home in the beautiful 
village of Etna 1 ireen. where \ re- 

Like her husband, -he. to... 1- of a 
since 1 ' tire and her life has 

abounded in good work- in the church and 
among th< ing poor in the world out- 

side. Among her neighbors -he i- held in 
the highest esteem and she numbers warm- 
hearted friend- by t! in the town 
where she ding her declini 
She ha- experienced man) of 

man\ of it- triumphs ami is 

no\\ surrounded by those who I 

known an ed her for her kindly dis- 

n and sweep moral nature. She is 

i\\ n the t. wards the 



COMFEXDICM OF BIOGRAPHY 



437 



journey's eivl, honored by all and cheered 
by a living faith in Him who in the after- 
while, when "life's fitful fever is over," will 
welcome her with the sweet plaudit, "Come 
thou blessed of the Father, enter into the 
y \ - i if thy Lord." 



FRANCIS M. METHENY. 

The gentleman whose name appears 
above is the descendant of a distinguished 
Scottish ancestry, in which country, Scot- 
land, his people had resided from very re- 
mote times. They were no doubt members 
of one of the famous highland clans, and 
took part in the wars by which Scotland 
tried for so many bloody years to maintain 
itself against the inroads of the British peo- 
ple. William Metheny, the grandfather of 
the subject of this sketch, was himself born 
in that country, and possessed all the char- 
acteristics of his historic race. When a 
young man he became convinced that he 
could do better in the new world, and ac- 
cordingly he boarded a sailing vessel anil 
after a few weeks of tossing on the billowy 
-Atlantic was landed safe and sound, though 
considerably shaken up, in New York liar- 
Inn-, lie made his way to Virginia and en- 
gaged in agricultural pursuits, and there he 
met the lady who a little later became his 
Alter their marriage they engaged in 
farming, and in the course i t time the fol- 
lowing children came to bless them: Ben- 
jamin, James, John, George, Andrew. 
Nancy, Mary and Lutha. William Metheny 
in time found that he could do better in the 
great West, and accordingly he first moved 
to Pennsylvania, where he remained for four 



years, and then came to Jay county. Indiana, 
in [838, when the country was very new and 
full of wild animals and almost as wild In- 
dians. He entered eighty acres of land in 
the deep woods and began with the help of 
his boys to clear off the heavy timber that 
covered the soil. There he passed the re- 
mainder of his days. His sou, Andrew, who 
became the father of subject, was reared on 
his father's farm and was educated in the 
old subscription schools of the neighborly « >d. 
During the war of the Rebellion he served 
for about four months as a member of Com- 
pany I, One Hundred and Fifty-fifth Indi- 
ana Volunteer Infantry, being mustered out 
July 12, 1865. Fie married Miss Lucretia 
Oler, who presented him with five children. 
as follows: William, Enos, Frank, Sarah 
A. and Mary L. Upon the death of his 
first wife he married Miss Cynthia Spohn 
and by her has four children: Ellen. Jesse, 
Edgar and Edith. In 1850 he removed to 
Marshall county, where he rented land and 
there he still resides. He is now living upon 
eighty acres which he bought. He is a 
prominent citizen of that county and an in- 
fluential Republican, but in recent wars has 
voted and worked with the Prohibitionists. 
He is a man of strong convictions and high 
principles and would like above all tilings 
to see the sale of liquor forever stopped. 
He has been a member of the Wesleyan 
Methodist church since he was sixteen years 
old, and is a consistent Christian and an hon- 
est man. His s on, Francis M., or "Frank,"' 
as he is familiarly called, was reared to farm 
life by his father and received a fair edu- 
cation in the district schools. He remained 
une until he was twenty years old. On 
December 25, 1883, he wedded Miss Emma 
E. < leiger, a native oi this county, but to this 



438 



WPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



marriage there arc no children. They have 
1 one child, a girl nan i ie P. 

Haney, After their marriage they moved 
to Dakota and remained there four - 
but ii ey returned to this county and 

lit ninety-one and a hi 
r homestead. Recently they sold this 
and bought eighty acre- in section 36, 
rd township, which they propose to inl- 
and make their future home. They 
are members of the United Brethren church, 
in which he has been class leader. 

■ it of the Sunday-school, dele-ate to 
the conference, president of the township 
Sundaj si tion, etc. I Ie is a Pn >- 

hibitionist and takes an active pari fi r the 
principles in which he believes. He and his 

known, and ha 
highest respect of all who have the pleasure 
of their acquaintance. 



MRS. SUSAN S XKI'.I-'.U. 

This lath is the daughter of Isaac and 
Elizabeth 1 K< tartman. and wa- 

in Richland county. Ohio, Februan 
1831. John Hartman, her grandfather, 
a nati I iermany, bul came to America 

and settled ill Pennsylvania. He was mar- 
ried in the latter state and to him were ln.ru 

children: Samuel, John Henry, 
Simon and one daughter. Isaac Hartman. 
who had in his early manhood learned the 

and to them were born five childn 
lows; Isaac, who died when only nil 

old; Julia, who became the wife of E. 
M. Baker an . who 

married William Mollenhour and now fe- 



ll Mentone; Su-.-m. - on. 

who married Mis- Martin and after her 

tth married Catherine Deardorff, lives in 

Warsaw : Jacob, who died when he was nine- 

n year- old. Isaac Hartman came from 

Hancock county. Ohio, to Kosciusko coun- 

Indiana, in the year 1851 
a farm in Seward township. Hi- daughter 
ir education in < Hiio, an I 
ter coming I state w. - in 

marriage with Lyman Latimer on Jun» 
1853. She lived happily with him until his 
death in 1862. On March 11. [866, she 
was united in marriage with Christian S 
her. The Sarber family is of German 

;it. hut in this country hails from Penn- 
sylvania. They resided in Kosciusko coun- 
ty, where they had one hundred and sixty 
acres on section 35 in Harrison township. 
lo Mr. and Mrs. Sarber five children « 
horn, as follows: Xettie. horn July \>). 

.\ ife of Austin I • 
and lues in Franklin township; Anna, born 
March 8, 1870. became the wife of \\ . J. 
Blue and resides in Harrison township; 
Julia, horn December -j. 1871, married AI- 

t Win-:- - in Jo 

Grant county. Indiana: Isaac, horn Septem- 
1.;. 1873, married Miss Myrtle Rock- 
hill and lives in Menti ■ 

Mr. Sarber was a kind husband and a 
en. I Ie nt prin- 

ciples and good morals and the world 
better for his having lived in it. He 
a member of the 
church, - ber, and he 

trus church at the time of his 

tember 1 tan- 

rat in politics and took much interest in 
of his party. I Ie was well 
I v all who had the honor of hi- 



COMPEXJUL'M OF BIOGRAPHY. 



439 



quaintance. He was a farmer and stock 
raiser and was mora than ordinarily success- 
ful, and at the time of his death left an es- 
tate valued at about thirty thousand dollars. 
After his death Mrs. Sarber moved from 
the farm to Mentone, moving in 1894, and 
her daughter lives with her there at this 
time. She has a large circle of friends and 
takes much interest in the work of her 
church. 



ELMER M. EDDINGER. 

In these days of large commercial trans- 
actions, when credits cut a large factor in 
the daily round of business, the province of 
the banker is very wide and very important. 
The excellence of the hanks of the present 
as compared with those of the past gives to 
all classes of business men first-class se- 
curity for their deposits, assistance when 
the_\' are in need of ready money to move 
their business, and a means of exchanging 
credits that could be accomplished in safety 
n < other way. In a large measure the suc- 
cess of the present time in all branches of 
business is largely the result of the present 
banking methods. It is quite common for 
the stockholder^ of the banks to be business 
men of prominence in the community — 
farmers, merchants, manufacturers and pro- 
fessional men. all of whom are known to the 
depositors and their standing well estab 
lished. This gives stability to the bank and 
confidence t" the community. Such is the 
confidence in the bank of which the subject 
■ rf this sketch is cashier. 

Elmer M-. Eddinger was born in Fulton 
county. Indiana, March 20, [864, ami is the 
-on of Frederick and Elizabeth (Burgh) 



Eddinger. The Eddinger family are oi 
Germanic descent and originated in this 
country in the Keystone state, where the 
father of subject was born and passed his 
early youth. He was brought to Fulton 
county. Indiana, when yet a boy and there 
he grew to manhood. He made the ac- 
quaintance of and married Miss Elizabeth 
Brugh, who had lived in the same neigh- 
borhood and had attended the same school. 
Their marriage occurred in February. 1863. 
and to them were born three children, two 
b iys and one girl, the latter dying. The two 
sons were the subject and his brother. Alvin 
I-.., who was born November 9. 1869. The 
latter married Miss Georgia Ferguson and 
they reside at Logansport, Indiana, he be- 
ing a conductor on the Panhandle railroad. 
The father was a man of learning ami piety, 
basing joined church in his boyhood, and 
bad such perfect control of himself that he 
was never known to lose his temper. He 
was of a buoyant disposition and always 
looked on the bright side of things. He 
died when the subject of this memoir was 
six years of age, July 3, 1870, and his 
funeral was attended by a large concourse 
of people, for he had many friend-. After 
his death the efforts of the subject were di- 
rected mainly toward assisting his mother, 
lie remained with her until he was sixteen 

years old, securing, in the meantime, a g 1 

education at the common schools. He 
learned the trade of milling from his step- 
father, for whom he worked for five years 
for his board and clothes, receiving ten dol- 
lars per month. He worked four months 
for this wages, but in March, [881, he 
started for Illinois, having at the time aboul 
twenty-five dollars. I [e secured a job with a 
miller at Parkville, Illinois, for ten dollars 



440 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



per week and board, which was much let- 
ter than he had done at home, lie worked 
thus for two years, and then came t" Sevas- 
topol in the spring "t' 1883 and found em- 
ployment in a grist-mill at thirty dollars per 
month and hoard. In September, [884, 

cured employment in the grist-mill at 
Mentone, the one now standing, which he 
assisted in equipping. There he remained 
until < krtober, [887, when he bought a one- 
third interest in the mill, the firm name be- 
ing Mentzer, Tucker & Company. In Feb- 
ruary, 1890, Men! I "tit t" John \V. 
Nichols and the firm name became Eddinger, 
Tucket ,\ l ompany. February 20, 1892, 
Mr. Fddinger sold his interest in the mill 
ami June _' 1 . 1892, opened the Farmers' 
Bank of Mentone. the officers of which were 

illows: V C. Manwaring, president; 
M. E. Hise, rice-president; E. M. Eddinger, 
cashier; I.. If Manwaring, assistant cashier. 
In [894 this hank bought "tit the Citizens' 
Bank, and then the officers became I. I >. 
Manwaring, president; M. E. Hise, vice- 
president; E. M. Eddinger, cashier; Allen 
int cashier. The hank has a 
paid-up capital of twenty thousand dollars 
and i- in first-class shape. In his responsible 
position of cashier, much of the burden of 
- of the hank fall- on Mr. Eddin- 
ulders, hut the responsibility could 
not he better placed. 

< )n June 10. [886, Mr. Eddinger was 

united in marriage with Mi-- Rosa \ . 

daughter of Milton E. Hise, of Sevastopol, 

and to this union three daughters were horn. 

Tural, born June 17. 1888; 

born September 18, [889; and 

1 '.. born February 14. 1895. In ]>•■! 

Mr. Eddinger 1- a Democrat, bul 
not take much interest in party affair-. He 



1 member of tin- Masonic fraternity, hav- 
ing been past master and has also been rep- 
resentative in the grand lodge three time-. 
I le i- the present treasurer • if the local lo 
Mr-. Eddinger is a member of the Baptist 
church of Mentone. Mr. Eddinger i- 
highly respected and hi- good name i- never 
called in question. 



LYMAN I.. MOLLENHOUR. 

This well-known farmer and stock r.: 
i- a descendant of one of the oldest families 
in the county. They came from Hancock 
county. Ohio, in 1828, or about that time. 
..nl -ettled in the wilderness when there 
were not more than half a dozen families 
in what is now this county. It would he 
difficult to describe the country at that time. 
I >ense fori red the land and stretched 

away in every direction, untouched by the 
hand of man. The Indian- were -till here 
and were usually friendly enough, hut some- 
lime- were just the iv nd there was 
110 telling when they might take it into 
iiead- t" dig up the hatel 1 go on the 
warpath. AT if game known to this 
latitude abounded, such ir, deer. 
wolves, panther-, etc., and it required con- 
stant vigilance t" save the stock from their 
depredations. It was nol safe for people to 
he in the wood- at night without tire. While 
all of the family were required to work hard 
in clearing off tin- big rush, 
yet tiie boys found plenty of time to hunt 
and the wild animal- afforded e.\C( 
-port. The father of the subject p 
through these ex] -. hut the subject 
came at a little later ■late ami missed some 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



441 



of the wilder sport. He was born in Frank- 
lin township, this c uinty, January 6, [860, 
and 1- the son of William and Elizabeth 
(Hartman) Mollenhour. (For sketch of 
the parents see the biography of Amos T. 
Mollenhour in this volume.) The old Mol- 
lenhour farm in part is now occupied h\ 
the thriving town of Sevastopol, h is hard 
to realize that this place so short a time ag 1 
was a wilderness, hut such is the fact which 
actual observers can substantiate. The sub- 
ject 1 if this memoir was reared in this town- 
ship '>n his father's farm. His father dying 
when he was five years old. he was put t<> 
work early to a>si-t his mother, and thus at 
a tender age became familiar with hard 
work. As he became elder he worked out 
and applied his wages to assist his mother. 
He was sent to school during the winters 
and managed to secure a fair education, his 
summers beng spent at work in farming. 
L'p m reaching manhi >< "1 he met and married 
Miss Mary J. .Morgan, daughter of John 
and Catherine (Sarber) Morgan, her par- 
ents being pioneers of this section of the 
county. Griffith Morgan was- born in Aus- 
tralia and came to this country at a very 
early day, settling in Franklin township, on 
sections 10 and 11. There he lived until 
the day of hi- death. His son John, the 
father of Mrs. Mollenhour, was reared and 
married here. To him and wife were born 
thirteen children, as follows: Henry. Til- 
den. Sarah. William. George, Mary J. ( sub- 
ject's wife), Hiram. Rosella, Griffith, 
Humphrey I... Jennie. Isadora and Charles. 
These children were reared in this county 
in the woods, where they helped to clear off 
the trees. To subject and wife were born 
children: Rosa I'.. horn June 14. [882, 
ie the wife of Vernon fones and lives 



in Seward township; Minnie M.. horn Jan- 
uary 7. [884; George E., horn February [8, 
1886; Wilbur ( »., born December i<>. 1887; 
Chancy O.. born November 9, 1889: Har- 
vey II., born January i_», [892; Lydia C, 
horn October 30. [896. When subject was 
married he and his wife put together their 
little hoard and bought twenty-four acres 
of the old farm. He later became interested 
in the saw-mill at Sevastopol in partnership 
with his brothers. John ami Isaac, continu- 
ing for seven years. He then bought his 
brothers' interest- and continued in that 
business for a total of fifteen rears. He 
then bought the farm of one hundred am! 
sixty acres he now owns, of Sol Ansberger, 
and moved there in the spring of 1899. He 
made enough money in the mill business to 
pay for his farm and is now known as one 
of the substantial citizens of the county. 
Mrs. Mollenhour is a member of the Meth- 
odist Protestant church. He is a member of 
the Red Men's lodge at Burket. He cast his 
first and last vote for the Republican party 
and stands for its principles. He is re- 
spected by evervbodv. 



WILLIAM J. BLUE. 

I hi- young and enterprising farmer and 
stock raiser is the son of the old settler and 
distinguished citizen. James H. Blue, and 
was bom in Harrison township, this 
ty, October 15, 1864. His mother was 
merly Miss Phcebe Bloomer. His people 
are among the oldest settlers in this part of 
the state and are among the most prominent 
citizens. Many year- ago his grandfather 
represented this county in the state legis- 



442 



IPENDIUM lOGRAPHY. 



lature, ami hi- father, a man of robust am! 
intellectual ma 

ity. The grandfather 

here wl i unty was nothing but 

a wil and in the wilds reared his 

family to lives of usefulness and honor. Hi- 

the father of subject, distingu 
himself in all the walks of life and is toda) 
ecimen of the American farmer 
of the twentieth century. ew up 

on hi- father'- farm near Mentone and re- 
in and excellent moral 
training. The home life was pure a; 

and he became a man with bound- 
ring i" see something 
of the V down in life. 

're went l" ; n [884 and remained 

nt eighteen months, workinj 
ily and inspecting the country 
return from thai 
\11ua R. Sarber, dauj 

•1 1 llartman ) Sarber, 
her mother being the widow of th< 
Lyman Latimer. Mr-. I' 

In her girlhood she re- 
1 a fail • - borne her 

liildren: Zelda II.. 
August 31, t888; Tres born April a, 

R., born December 19, 1893 : 
Ralph \\ .. born July 14. [899. Mr. Blue 
! upon the farm where he now resides. 
iltrtli of a mile ea-t 1 if Mentoi 
Harrison township, ami in 1895 lie 1 

the old Sarber farm and 
I le 1- now condui 
era] farming >ns ami has been very 

mocrat in politics, 
.;• w grandfather I 

and i- "lie of the ficient workers 

is party m this portion of the county. 
wn-hip in o 



o -in entu 'ii- and in 1 ither w -\\< >w 11 liis 

1 for pure civic administration. In the 

of 1 lar- 
township by a majority of twenty-four 
in a township whose normal Republican ma- 
jority is from twenty to twenty-five. This 
shows th ' in which he is held and 

the confidence of his fellow citizen- in his 
honesty and abilitv . 



MATH IAS W. LUTES 

This well known citizen is another of the 
nt boys who. about forty year- ago, en- 
the Union. 1 le was little more 
than a boy when he went out to fight his 
country's battles and during that ever 
; le he was found ready tor 
1 le did not enter the sen ic< 
did, fmni motive- of sport and frolic, but 
saw beneath the surface and that 

south was determined to break up the 
L'nion for the purpose of establishii , 
federacy of sla> e-hol< 

he had been taught to 
slavery and to do all I to obliti 

in front this :utcheon. 1 1 

that when th( • precipitated the con- 

flict he wa- rea.lv to take up arm- to pre- 
the l'nion. Mr. Lutes wa- born in 
Fulton county. Ohio, Xovember 23, 1843, 
and 1 ilenn and Mary 1 Donut) 

The Lute- family are of German 
n and natives of Pennsylvania, ami 
I [enrj I he was 

Jit to Wayne county. Ohio, and there 

grew to manh 1 on hi- father'- farm. IK' 

atten >*ed ;i 



COMPEXPIL'M OF BIOGRAPHY. 



443 



fair education for that early day. Upon at- 
taining years of maturity lie met and mar- 
ried Miss Mary Donut, a native of Pennsyl- 
vania and of Germanic descent. Shortly 
after their marriage they moved to Fulton 
county, Ohio, where he purchased one hun- 
dred and sixty acres of woodland and be- 
gan ti > clear i iff the timber. He made a small 
clearing and built a rude log cabin and in 
this was domiciled his young wife. Here 
they lived and labored, steadily expanding 
the clearing and improving the farm, which 
he had entered from the government, until 
the spring of 1859, when he sold out and 
came by wagon to Harrison township, this 
county, and bought one hundred and forty 
acres in section 17. This he largely im- 
proved, and finally gave it to his children. 
He bought another tract in section 15, Har- 
rison township, and upon that land he spent 
the remainder of his days. He was a man 
of more than ordinary intelligence and ac- 
tivity, and was among the leaders of his 
community. He possessed great piety, and 
in early manhoed became a licensed local 
minister of the Methodist Episcopal church, 
lie filled many local appointments for years 
and was regarded as a man of singular 
jiower in the ministry. He served many 
years as justice of the peace and his legal 
advice was often sought by the citizens. He 
passed away June 5, [888, and his widow 
April 7. 1900. To their marriage four chil- 
dren were born, as follows: William D., 
who married Miss Mary Petticord and re- 
sides in Cass county, this state; Eliza A.. 
who became the wife of Thomas Petticord 
and is deceased; Mathias \\\. subject; 
Nancy P.. who wedded Simon Whetsone 
and iives in Harrison township. 

Mathias W. Lutes was fifteen years old 

27 



when his father came to this county. Pie 
had attended the common schools in Ohio, 
and continued his education after he came 
here. In July, 1862, when he was only nine- 
teen years old, he enlisted in Company A. 
Seventy-fourth Indiana Infantry, and was 
mustered at Fort Wayne. Indiana. After 
a season spent 111 camp of instruction he w :i- 
sent to the field in Kentucky. A little later 
they were transferred to the army operating 
around Chattanooga, and after several 
mi ivements of importance he participated in 
the desperate and bloody battle of Chicka- 
mauga, where the Union army was pierced 
by the rebels and sent flying back to Chat- 
tanooga. General Thomas, who saved the 
day, was ever after styled the "Rock of 
Chickamauga," as he was the rock against 
which the rebels flung themselves to com- 
plete the victory, though without avail. The 
subject was in the thickest of this fight, and 
this, his first important engagement, was a 
bloody introduction for a farmer boy to en- 
counter. He participated in the Atlanta 
campaign! and was under fire for one hun- 
dred and five days, during which time many 
battles were fought ami many hardships en- 
dured. He marched with Sherman to the 
sea and fought at the siege and fall of Sa- 
vannah. He then moved with his regiment 
up through the Carolinas. taking part in all 
tiie important engagements and witnessing 
the surrender of General Joseph F. Johns- 
ton. After this his tattered regiment, with 
torn flags (lying and with martial pomp, 
marched to Washington to he reviewed by 
the President and the great generals, thence 
to lie sent home to their happy families and 
their grateful fellow citizens. He was mus- 
tered out at Washington, 1). C, June 9, 
[865, after having served gallantly during 



444 



COMl'llS'lUUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



years of desperate fighting and harass- 

impaigns. He did ii"t receive a wound 
during the war. I>ut because of disabilities 
there incurred now draws a pension o 
dollars per month. Two dates in connection 
with the military career of Mr. Lutes are 
indelibly stamped upon his memory. The 
first, April 9, 1865, was the surrender of the 
rebel army under General Lee. an 1 
which caused great rejoicing among the 
"boys in blue," as well as throughout the 
North. Their rejoicing was turned to 
mourning, however, when, on Aj>ril 14. 
came the terrible tidings of the foul 
sination of the beloved President. Aft< 
war he resumed farming operations on his 
father's farm. 

December 24, 1865, Mr. Lutes was 
united in marriage with Miss Mar) I Kes- 

md t" this marriage six children were 
born, four of whoi 1 are -till living: Min- 
nie M.. who became the wife of Frank 
ijhton and resides in 1 [arrison township; 
Dora I ; --. the wife of Wilson Harmon, of 

township; Florence, who wedded Ed. 
Snyder and lives in Alabama; Mamie, un- 
man - in Clay township with h< 

bject's first wife died August 
30, 1893, ami on March 25, 1895, he mar- 
ried Catherine J. * 00k, daughter of James 

•unty. 

lis union one child was born. Li I lie. born 
14. 1896. Mr. Lute tl Re- 

in. 1 is i it chairman of the 

township and member of the count) central 
committee. In 1894 he was elected trustee 
of Harrison township and served till 
While thus sen ing he built twi 
and was the first trustee t<> build stone arches 
foi the luntry bridges 1 1 did a 

great deal to build up the schools, and upon 



his retirement was presented by the teach- 
er- with a line rocker in appreciation of his 
efficient services in bettering the scl 
lie and wife are members of the Methodist 
Episcopal church, lie i- active in church 
work, and i- one of the most prominent men 
in this portion of I 



J( IHN VV. DUNLAP. 

In this country of ours it i- necessary 
-Mould follow the occupa- 
tion of farmii some 
milling, some medicine, etc. All are 1 
sary to each other and form part- and 

iet) . There 
time when each family was almost 
wholly self-sustaining, when the mother 
made the garments and the father produced 
ad, but this old order of affair- has 
• away with by advanced methods 
more in accord with our pi ind insti- 

tutions. The farmer can not get along with- 
out the small store-keeper in his town un- 
der the new order of thin--- The - 

• likewise cannot get along without the 
farmer to buy hi- le dependence 

is mutual and required to till his po- 

sition. 

n W. I lunlap was born ii ton 

county, Ohio, March 8. [839, and is tin 
of William and Susan ( White I Dunlap. 
The father wa- horn March 13, iSu. and 
the grandfather, John Dunlap. wa- horn No- 
vember 7. 1789, and hi- wife October t8, 
1, -So. They were married near Wheeling, 
Wesl \ irginia, by Rev. John Pickard June 
13, t8u. The fall of the same year they 
moved and began farming 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



445 



M'-. In tin: spring of t8i2 he enlisted in 
0! e of the regiments raised in Ohio tor the 
war wiih Great Britain and was soon as- 
signe I to the army of General Hull, operat- 
ing in the vicinity of Detroit. When Gen- 
era! Hull surrendered his army to the Brit- 
ish Mr. Dunlap returned to his farm and re- 
sumed his farming operations. In the 
spring of 1836 he removed with his family 
to Coshocton, Ohio, where he resided until 
his death. The father of John was William 
Dunlap and his mother was Martha Gamble. 
whose ancestors were Scotch-Irish and were 
driven from Scotland to the northern part 
of Ireland during the famous Protestant re- 
hellion. William Dunlap was the descend- 
ant of one of three brothers. John. Samuel 
and William, who were sent out under the 
auspices of some society in their country. 
They settled near Philadelphia, and their de- 
scendants are now scattered over the coun- 
try. William Dunlap. the father of John 
W.. was a farmer and a resident of Ohio 
until 1854. when he came with his family 
le farm now occupied by George VV. 
Rickel, adjoining Sevastopol in Franklin 
township, this county. Upon that farm he 
continued to reside until the day of his death, 
August 10. [901. He was a man of much 
force of character and his good name was 
reproach. He wielded in his lifetime 
much influence in politics and religion. In 
Ohio he served as assessor, and in this coun- 
ty he served as postmaster of Sevastopol 
and .' - justice of the peace. He was a strict 
man 1 in questii ms 1 if morals and passed away 
with the respect of a large number of ac- 
quaintances. His g 1 and faithful wife 

preceded him to the grave by about eight 
years. 

The subject of this memoir was reared 



upon his father's farm, and was given a 
common-school education. At the age of 
twenty-one years he enlisted in the Union 
army in Company K. Twenty-fourth Ohio 
Volunteer Infantry, under Captain Given, 
and was soon afterward sent to the field in 
Virginia. He did duty at first in that state 
and in Kentucky and participated in several 
skirmishes. Early in 1862 he was taken 
sick, was sent to the hospital and remained 
there until April, when he was sent home for 
disability. Two years later he had so fat- 
recovered as to be read}- for the service 
again, whereupon he reported and was 
placed on detached duty and sb continued 
until June, 1805. when he was honorably 
discharged. He returned to Kosciusko 
county and remained until the fall of 1866, 
when he began clerking in a store at Sevas- 
topol, remaining there about one year. He 
then entered the store of Hudson Beck, of 
Warsaw, and continued there some consid- 
erable time. On January 8, 187 1. he wis 
united in marriage with Miss Martha A., 
daughter of Pierce and Mary (Shrack) 
Jeffries. She was born January 1, 1843. in 
Richland count)-, Ohio, and was given in 
her youth a common-school education. No 
children have been born to the marriage of 
subject and wife. Later in his business ca- 
reer Mr. Dunlap engaged in mercantile pur- 
suits in Akron, Silver Lake, and in the fall 
of [880 in Mentone, and there he rem 
until his recent retirement fr >m active busi- 
ness life. He is a Democrat in politics, but. 
asdic from voting, does not take much part 
in the struggles of his party for supremacy. 
lie and his wife are members of the Baptist 
church of Mentone. He was made a Mason 
in 1863 while at Rochester, Indiana, and 
now holds membership in Mentone Lodge, 






COMPENDIUM OF BIoCR.lfllY. 



No. 576. Hi- i> also a member of the 

remplar commandery at Warsaw. 

orne a blameless life ami has the 

: and gi od w isl '1 who know 

him. 



SAMUEL HAINES. 



No agriculturist of Jackson township, 
inty, Indiana, is better known 
or more appreciated for his personal worth 
than Samuel Haines, who is a si n of Jesse 
ami Elizabeth (Myres) Haines, ami was 
born in Montgomery county, < Hiio, < (ctober 
t3, 1832. The Haines family, as well as 
the Myres family, were of Gennan origin, 
rations had lived in Pennsyl- 
vania, and from Lam unity, in that 
the immediate progenitors of the fam- 
liose names migrated t<> < mio, 
whence the subject of this sketch came ;•■ 
Indiana. Haines was born October 
21, 1794, and his wife May 2, 1*17. 

Jesse Haines firsl married a Miss Kem- 
per in Pennsylvania ami shortly afterward 
removed from the Keystone state i" the 
Buckeye state. He located in Montgomery, 
ami there his wife die'!. lie next married 
Elizabeth Myres, who bore him twelve chil- 
dren, as follows: Anna, born November 
26, (824; M. M., 1 Ictober 9, [826; Cath- 
erine. Ocl 6, 1828; John, September 
12, li. '• 'her 1 5, [832 : I >avid. 
September -'4. 1834; Sarah X er 16, 
[836; Rudolph, Augusl .;. 1838; Eli; 
October _'. [840; Leah, January 4. 
Stephen, April 4, 1045: and Jesse, February 
-' 1 . i i 

Jess tther of this large family, was 

emaker b) trade, but owned a small lot 

and house where lie worked bv the da\ at 



his trade for many year-. Later in life he 

shaker forks and 
rakes, hut. owing to the large family which 
he v 'i" ,r t. ne [uired 

ni' .re than a fair living, and both he and 
wife died in very moderate circumst 

this woi i Is are concerned. 
Samuel 1 lames, in consequence of 
heav; which his father 

I in his endeavor t" rear a large family 
tably, was early hired out by the year, 

and one-half of his earnings for a long time 
went t" his fath< 
half he retained in order t" pr 
with clothes. This meager salary amounted 
in hut four dollars per month for the first 
three his lain >r : the next two years 

he received live dollars per month, and then 
for a year earned si\ dollars per month. 
During these years ho was permitted to at- 
tend school three months each year, and be- 
ing very attentive to his studies and 
quick to learn he acquired a verv 
ucation for that early clay in the backwoods. 
In 1850, being then possessed "i sixty 
dollars in cash. Samuel Haines came 
Ohio to Indiana, driving cattle for s, ,me 

■in I tvayton. < m reaching 
township, Kosciusko county, he located in 

II <i and was s, . well pleased with the 
locality that he has ever since made it his 
home. The first two years of his life here 
wile farm hand by the day or 
month. He saved some money, and then 
worked for "Big Sam" Ulrich for one hun- 
dred and forty-four dollars per annun 
four years. In this time his savin, 
amounted to seven hundred dollars. 

June ''. [856, Samuel Haines 
joined in wedlock with Miss Esther Ulrich, 
,i daughter of "B Llrich, 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



447 



twenty-two years made his residence on 
"Big Sam's" farm, superintending its cul- 
tivation and doing no small part of the 
labor necessary thereto with his own hands. 
During that period lie began and continued 
to invest his capital in land, his first purchase 
being one hundred and sixty acres, his sec- 
ond one hundred and sixty acres and his 
third forty acres, so that he now owns three 
hundred and sixty acres, all the result of 
his indomitable will, industrious habits and 
unswerving honesty in all his transactions. 
Mr. Haines was bereft by death of his 
first wife in 1870, and his second marriage 
look place in April. [871, to Miss Elizabeth 
Ulrich, daughter of Samuel and Susanna 
( Gripe 1 Ulrich. The former was a native 
of Montgomery county, Ohio, but both the 
Ulrich and Gripe families came from Lan- 
caster count}', Pennsylvania. 

Samuel A. Ulrich was born May 2, 1819, 
ami when eighteen years old came to Kos- 
ciusko county, Indiana, making his first ap- 
pearance here April 4. [837. He saw Jack- 
son township at a time when its entire vot- 
ing population numbered only seven, and his 
own hist presidential vote was cast for Will- 
iam Henry Harrison, the hero of Tippe- 
canoe anl the first governor of Indiana Ter- 
ritory. He built the first bridge across 
Plunge creek, and in his pioneer days killed 
man- a will animal, including wdiat would 
today be luxuries lit for the table of an 
epicure — deer, turkey, grouse, squirrels, 
etc.. but at that time they palled the ap- 
petite of the backwoodsman on account of 
their frequency. Tin Gripe familj settled 

in [837, about the same time the Ul- 
rich family came, and hence grew the in- 

v which resulted in the union of the 
two fami 



Samuel A. Ulrich was a very popular 

man in his day and was elected the first 
supervisor of Jackson township. He cut 
out many a rude road, which is in >w a 
graveled highway. In 1839 he assisted in 
constructing the first bridge across the Eel 
river at this point, and this was done on a 
Sunday, although he was a member of the 
German Baptist church. 

Samuel Haines, the subject proper ol 
this biography, had born to him, by his first 
wife, seven children, viz : Stephen, John, 
Samuel A., Joseph. Manda, Noah and Sarah. 
To his second marriage have been born four 
children, but all have passed away but one, 
Rosa, wife of Ora Michaels, of Jackson 
township. Mr. and Mrs. Haines are mem- 
bers of the German Baptist church and are 
highly esteemed by their neighbors for their 
manv excellent personal characteristics. In 
politics Mr. Haines is a Republican. 

Mr. Haines' family are very comfortably 
situated in life, owing to the good manage- 
ment of Mr. Haines and the ready and will- 
ing aiil of his amiable helpmate. His com- 
fortable brick dwelling is an ornament to the 
neighborhood in which he lives, and his sub- 
stantial outbuildings are unsurpassed by any 
in the township. The splendid reputation 
which he enjoys is well deserved, and it 
well indeed if the township had a few more 
residents like him. 



THERON 1). Id" I l ERBAUGH. 

One of tlie most active thoroughgoing 

and enterprising young farmers .if Lake 
township, Kosciusko county. Indiana, is the 
gentleman whose name stands at the head 



448 



(FEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



of this biographical notice. He is a son of 

[j« \V. and Lydia i Miller i Butter 
and was born on a farm in Pleasant town- 
ship, Wabash county, Indiana, on the l8th 
daj of June. [872. Both the Butterbaugh 
and the Miller families were of German ex- 
traction, but the parents of the subject of 
remarks were natives of Ohio, from 
which >tate they immigrated into Indiana 
and settled down to farming in Wabash 
county, where they were among the most re- 
spected of the agriculturists of their respect- 
ive neighb irhoods. 

George \V. Butterbaugh was born in 
1846, in Lake township, Kosciusko county, 
ami was also reared in the same locality. 
The Miller family came from Ohio when 
their daughter was about two years 
old. The two families settled in the same 

'"•ill 1 and the children were reared 

in close companionship. In his early man- 
h I G. W. Butterbaugh was a school teach- 
er, both in Wabash and Kosciusko counties, 
and this vocation he followed for 

Being now prepared t" en, hark on 

•a of matrimony, and having selected 
Miss Miller for his polar or guiding star, 
he wedded her in the fall of |S-, an( ] at 
"iice began housekeeping and tannin, 
rented land in Wabash county. Mr Butter- 
baugh was industrious and frugal, under- 

1 his calling, and a few years later was 
able t- 1 purchase an eighty-acre tract just 
north of the William Butterbaugh place in 
Lake township, on which he lived until the 
spring of 1NN4. when he bought and moved 
upon a one-hundred-and-eight) -se\ en-acre 
tract just west of North Manchester, upon 
which he made the greater part of the im- 

ements and on which he still makes his 
home. Il<- is ci msidered ne 1 if the 



ert farmers in Chester towns 
Wabash county, and even thing about his 
premises fully justifies this reputation. 

'I'her, ,11 I ). Butterbaugh is ■ 51 of 

the three i W. and Lydia 

\ Miller 1 Butterbaugh, the two others I 
Abraham and Esta. Of the latter two. 
Abraham lives in Chicago and is married to 
Lulu Reed: Esta, the m, is still 

and lives with his father, while tak- 
ing a course of study at North Manchester 
_e in Wabash county. Theron 1>. was 
carl) trained to farming ami has acquired a 
reputation equal to that of his father, tak- 
ing into consideration his still comparatively 
young years. He is active and enter] ■ 
and 1» e to that class ,,f young men us- 
ually denominated, in common parlano 
"•hustlers.'" 1 le \ 

':is youthful days, in cultivating the home 
farm, but found time to attend the district 
school and proved to he an apt scholar. 
From the country school he was 
to the high school, and then t" the State 
Normal School at Terre Haute, where he 
was fully qualified for the duti< 
master. 

Theron 1). Butterbaugh lived with 
parents until his marriage. Januarv 
to Miss Mary E. Wright, who 
July 12. 18/6. This felicitous union has 
been graced with four children, namely: 

M.. who was l»>rn January 23. 
Rub) May. April S. [897; Robert I"... Au- 
gust 21, 1899; and Delbert Wright 
17. 1901. 

Mr. and Mrs. Butterbaugh are mem 
of the German Baptist church, to the sup- 
port <>f which they contribute quite liber- 
ally, and are much interested in promoting 
its work as well as in advancing 



COMPEXDIL'M OF BIOGRAPHY. 



449 



perity. In politics Mr. Butterbaugh is a 
Republican and assists his party in a quiet 
way at the pulls, but has never in any sense 
or manner been an office seeker. He and 
wife are among the most esteemed farming 
people of Wabash and Kosciusko counties. 
in both of which they are widely known, 
and no one is better thought of than Theron 
D. Butterbaugh, the "hustler." 



WILLIAM C. THOMPSON. 

This well known citizen and old settler 
comes of a family that settled in the wilder- 
ness when the Indians still roamed almost 
unmolested and the wild animals had things 
much their own way. They were not only 
among the early pioneers, but were among 
the first of the pioneers, if not themselves 
the first, In fact on both sides of his fam- 
ily his ancestors as far back as known were 
among the first, not only to brave the wilds 
of the West, but were also among the first 
i" cross the ocean to the wilderness of 
America. They seem to have been adven- 
turous and enterprising beyond almost any 
of the other emigrants and pioneers. Will- 
iam C. Thompson was born in Lake count}. 
Ohio, October 17. [836, and is the son of 
Cyrus and Adaline (Harper) Thompson. 
The father was a native of Virginia and re- 
moved to Coshocton county, Ohio, at a very 
early period, there passing the remainder of 
his days. Many years ago, early in the set- 
tlement of the American colonies, three 
brothel's of the name came from Ireland and 
settled in this country. They located in the 
Old Dominion, but afterward, upon the first 
settlement of the new state of Ohio, they 



entered that wilderness to establish homes. 
The Harpers were also early settlers in 
Ohio, John Harper being the one from 
whom subject is descended. The great- 
grandfather Harper seems to have been an 
Indian fighter, or at least was one of the 
settlers to penetrate the western wilderness 
before the pioneers arrived. In one of his 
excursii ms he was captured by the red men 
and held as a prisoner for two years, lie 
then managed to make his escape and re- 
turned to his family, who had given him up 
for dead and were in destitute circumstances. 
Cyrus Thompson lived but rive years after 
his marriage, leaving, when he passed away, 
two sons. William C, subject, and George 
C. After the death of Cyrus the mother re- 
married and all then came to Elkhart, Indi- 
ana. This was in 1840, when the northern 
part of this state was a howling wilderness 
and the Indians were still here. The dense 
forests which covered the soil were infested 
with wild and savage animals and homes 

had to be cut from the tangled wild \\ I. 

They came out in wagons and had to cut 
their way very often through the brush and 
fallen trees. William C. remained with his 
step-father until he was seventeen years old 
and then began to do for himself. He be- 
gan by w 1 irking out by the month and thus 
continued until the Rebellion broke oul in 
all its fury, whereupon, unable to withstand 
the treason of the South, he enlisted in I 
pany M, Second Indiana Cavalry, or the 
Forty-first Infantry, and was mustered in at 
Indianapolis. He was sent to Kentucky and 
later, at Gallatin, Tennessee, was captured 
by the enemy and held several days. He 
participated in a sharp tight at Howling 
Green and continued to fight in many skir- 
mishes and swift campaigns, serving in all 



45° 



UPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



two years and ten months. He suffered 
greatly from his arduous services and was 
honorably discharged July -. 1864, for dis- 
ability, when he returned to his family in 
Elkhart county, and took up the burd< 
peact. Ho now draws a pension of ten dol- 
lars per month. 

On August 19, 1852, Mr. Thorn] 
was united in marriage with Miss Sarah J., 
b Emery. S born 

ember 30, 1836, and is of German de- 
scent, her grandparents coming from 

To this marriage eight children were 
born. -: Two that died in infancy. 

George 11., Josephine E., William 11.. 
Mamie A., John 11. ami Austin 11. Mr. 
Thompson's tir-t wife died in 1873 and he 
1 for hi- second wife Elizabeth Oberty. 
and upon her death, two years later, he 
weddel Luanda Milton, who was horn in 
Franklin county, Virginia, February 4. 
[833. When she was ten 1 -he was 

ght from Virginia to Ohio, thence to 
ay. arriving in [849 and settling 
near pol. where they remained for 

time and then removed to a farm three 
■ of Mentom - first mar- 

ried to David Hubler. Henry Hubler, her 
ler-in-law, assisted in raising the iir-t 
cent in this county for the Union army. 
After -he wa- married she lived at Pali 
and by her first husband had two children. 
Mar; rl and Nellie lata. Mr. Hub- 

lied July 5. 1878. Mr. Thompson is 
ibstantial citi ■ 1 ninty 

ami takes much interest in publi 
lie is an influential Republican and 

■ in the splendid principles >^ hi- party. 
lie 1- a member of tin- Masonic fraternity, 
joining at Elkhart, and being dimitted to 
Mentone, ami i- now master of Lodge N'o. 



576 there. II' gh as a neighbor 

ami friend. 

Mrs. Nancy J. Milton, the mother 
Mrs. Thompson, died December 23, i> 
at the remark.i f one hundred and 

two ye 5 e wa- an early settler of | 

ci unty and was Christian lady and 

;. member of the German Baptist church. 
She raised -even children to maturity. Her 
husband, Andrew Milton, was a nativ< 
Virginia, and moved to Indiana about 1 s 
He was e man. had no enemies and al- 
wa 1 word for ever) one. 

:h Mr. and Mrs. Milton were big 
teemed bv all who knew them. 



AM ASA (■ \R\VI N ID. 

This well-known and distinguished 
farm* de- 

scent, his anci ming fr< im 

land ah iut f< air generatii 

of Xew Je 
who came over were three brothi 
after 1 ime time twi 

them returned to their native country, but 

ither remained and from him an 
scendi ante in this coun- 

try : at least, no other of the name i- known 
to ha 1 an I ment 

!• re the Rev- 
nan war or immediately afterward. 

ard than 
did the) . E\ en New J< time 

wild, the woo 

>ut the 
tlements and Pittsburg were about the 

nents 1' I the vast e.xpaii 




MRS AMASA GARWOOD 




d^rruU^J ££ate 



44/WZi 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



45' 



country stretching from the Alleghany 
mountains to the Pacific coast. William 
Garwood, father of the subject of this 
memoir, is a direct descendant of the broth< r 
who remained in this country. He grew up 
in New Jersey, his native state, and was 
reared to the life of a farmer. Upon reach- 
ing maturity he wedded Miss Alice Cole and 
to this marriage was born one child, John 
Garwood, yet living. Upon her death Will- 

iam Garw 1 married Miss .Margaret Scott, 

who presented him with five children, as 
follows: Joshua S., who married Miss 
Sarah Gaskill, yet lives in Stark county, 
Ohio, and is engaged in farming: Alice, the 
eldest, became the wife of Joseph B. Cattell 
and is now deceased: William died when 
he was five years "Id; Amasa. subject; 
Abraham S., who died when he was a small 
boy. About the year 1832 William Gar- 
wood left Xew Jersey and started for Ohio 
by way of the lakes. He was taken sick at 
Detroit and unfortunately died, and his 
stricken family continued on to their destina- 
tion and located in Stark county. Ohio, 
where the mother bought sixty-five acres of 
land where Alliance now stands. At that 
time Stark county was very wild ami the 
land was covered with dense timber which 
w a- filled with wild and savage animals. 
John Garwood, the son by her former hus- 
band, soon after the death of his father re- 
turned to New Jersey. After a time Mrs. 
Garwood received a proposal of marriage 
from Jonathan Michener, and accepting the 
same they were married, and to this union 
two children were horn. Jane and Hannah. 
Her second husband dying, she wedded 
again and outlived her third husband. 

Amasa Garwood remained with his 
mother until he was twenty-nine years old. 



working in the meantime at home or wher- 
ever he could do best for all concerned. ( >n 
September _»o. 1857, he was united in mar- 
riage with .Miss Mary C. Brush, a native of 
Xew York, and of German descent. To 
this marriage six children were born, as fol- 
lows: Minnetta J., born August 29, 1858, 
became the wife of William Nelson and lives 
in Fulton county: Alice L.. born August 17, 
[862, became the wife of Clanthus Borton, 
of Franklin township; Joshua, horn < »cto- 
ber 2, 1864, married Miss Matilda Baker 
and resides in Harrison township; Maud 
M., horn August 14. [873, is unmarried and 
lives with her father: William C. and Fannie 
M. are decease!. Mr. Garwood's first wife 
died August 16, [886, and on September 
24, 18S9, he wedded Mrs. Mary E. Stuart, 
the widow of Charles Stuart, her maiden 
name having been Williamson. Eight years 
later his second wife died. In 1852 Mr. 
Garwood came to Indiana in the interest of 
a man who was moving out, bringing for 
him a load of household goods and stopping 
in Hancock county. In 1854 he again vis- 
ited this state and taught school in Turkey 
Creek township, this county, and two years 
later came again and taught a term < if schi m >1 
in Harrison township. In 1N57 he moved 
his family to this county and settled on 
eighty acre- of woodland in section 35, this 
township, and erected a small loo- cabin on 
tiie same and began to clear off the timber. 
He afterward added to this tract and cleared 
in all about one hundred acres, lie steadily 
improved his farm, cleared off the trees and 
now has one of the besl farm- in this part 
of the county. lie has been successful to 
a high degree and is one of the county's 
best and most progressive farmers and citi- 
zen-, lie is well known ami is respected by 



45- 1 



\IPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



one who has the right t" call him 
friend. He is now nearing the other shore 
and in I f nature must sliorth 

take his departure, but he rests in the as- 
surance that his life has been worthily spent 
;m<l that the g 1 he has done far outshines 

id. He is a sterling Republican and 
cast his first presidential vote for the 
emancipator, Abraham Lincoln. He hi 
cupied various positions of honor and trust 
bestowed upon him by his fellow citizens, 
and always to his own credit and the satis- 
faction of his constituents. The county has 
no better citizen. 



HENRY K. NEFF. 

Born amid humble surroundings and 
ucated in the rugged -clio.il of experience, 
Henrj E. Neff never courted the tickle 
dess Fori did she cast in his cradle 

rly in life deprived oi 
a lather's wise and gentle guidance and ol>- 
to eel) upon his own resources for a 

livelih 1 at an age when boys most need 

a parent's admonitions, he manfully a-- 
sumed the responsibility of his mother's and 
younger brothers' and sisters' I and 

that he discharged tins duty well and faith- 
fully is attested by those who were ac- 
quainted with the circumstances and who 
well knew the superior material whirl, en- 
tered into his physical, mental and moral 
composition. 

Mr. Neff was i;, rn in the town of Win- 
er, Preble o iunt) . < Hiio, M .- 3, 1*54. 
in of 1 )aniel and Susanna I - 
AetY. both names of the county of Preble, 
th sides of the fami'.v 



■Acre >hio, settling 

Preble county when that part of the state 
y outskirts of civilization and 

taking an active interest in the agricultural 
development of the country. Daniel Xeff 
died when Henry E. was a small hoy. 
ing the family in such circumstances that 
the children were thrown upon the world at 
comparatively early aye- to provide for 
the mother's necessities and for those too 
young to he of an) assistance in the waj of 
procuring a livelihood, the subject worked 
at any kind of honest toil that he could find 
t" do and in his own language was "kicked 
around fn m pillar to post" for several years 
and compelled to undergo many hardships 
t ■ ■ earn sufficient means with which to rip- 
ply the modest wants of the family. The 
deep ami tender regard with which he 
Heated his mother and the younger mem- 
bers of the family and the many vicissitudes 
he experienced for their sakes show him to 
have been animated by true and 
motives. Young Neff continue ulder 

the responsibility of the faun rt in 

his native state until young manhood, when 
he moved to Miami county. Indiana, thence 
subsequently to the county of Elkharl 
tling in die town of Benton, lie secured a 
temporary home in that place and. as for- 
merly, turned his hands to any kind of em- 
ployment he could find and continue.! 

•k after the interests of his mother until 
her death. From that time until they wi 
old enough to take if themselves lie 

was the mainstay of his younger brotl 
and sisters, meanwhile earning the reputa- 
tion of an industrious and reliable young 
man and winning the confidence and re- 
. if those who employed him. 

the 7th day of August, 1879, Mr. 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



453 



Xeff was married to Miss Esther I. Hardli- 
ner, daughter of Isaac W. and Rachael 
i Foster ) Harshner, who came to Kosciusko 
county in the year 1861. Mr. Harshner 
bought a quarter-section of land near the 
village of Etna Green and became a pros- 
perous fanner and prominent citizen of thai 
community. He lived on the place where 
he originally located until his death and en- 
joyed the reputation of one of Etna town- 
ship's most enterprising' and prosperous 
men. He served in the war of 1861 and 
took part in a number of battles during that 
struggle. Mrs. Neff was born December 
11. 1858, in Morrow county, Ohio, and was 
a miss of three summers when brought to 
the new home in the county of Kosciusko. 
She received her educational training in the 
public schools and at the time of her mar- 
riage was one of the popular young ladies 
of the neighborhood in which she lived. 

After his marriage Mr. Neff located at 
Etna Green and turned his attention to farm- 
ing, renting land in the vicinity of the town 
and prospering in his undertaking". Subse- 
quently he, purchased a good residence prop- 
erty in the village and continued agricult- 
ural pursuits mi land leased for the purpose 
until he hail accumulated considerable 
money, having been a careful and judicious 
farmer and a skillful manager in matters of 
finance and business. After spending a num- 
ber of years as a tiller of the soil Mr. Xeff 
sold his home in Etna Green and engaged in 
the mercantile business in Goshen as a gro- 
cer. This enterprise proved fairly success- 
ful, but not being to his taste he disposed 
of his stock after one year's experience be- 
hind the counter and, returning to Etna 
township, resumed farming, which he has 
since carried on with encouraging results. 



He is an industrious man and has greatly 
improved his place and brought it to a pros- 
perous condition, making of it one of the 
best farms in the township of Etna. 

Mr. Xeff stands high in the estimation 
of the people of his neighborhood and is 
never behind in enterprises having for their 

I object the promotion of the county's ma- 
terial interests. In a quiet and unostenta- 
tious way he has labored earnestly for the 
moral advancement of the community, being 
a man whose most prominent aim has been 
to benefit his fellows and lead them in the 
direction of right living. He possesses a 
deeply religious nature and subordinates 
every other consideration to the duty he 
owes to God as a member in his visible king- 
dom. For a period of twenty years he has 
been an active and consistent Christian and 
a member of the church, during which time 
he has filled various important positions. 
such a class leader, teacher in the Sunday- 
school and superintendent of the United 
Brethren church at Etna Green. At the 
present time he is one of the pillars of the 
Etna Green congregation and his daily life 
is an eloquent exponent of the faith which 
inspires him to do so much to spread the 
truths of the gospel and impress them upi 'it 
the minds and hearts of his fellow men. 
Mrs. Xeff is also a zealous member of the 
church, active in general religious work and 
a leader in the various societies of the loc i 
D mgregation at Etna Green. 

Mr. and Mrs. Xeff have never been 
blessed with children of their own, but some 
years ago they opened their home to an 
orphan boy, William Worley, son of Mr. 
\eif'~ sister, and lavished on him all the 
wealth of parental love. They gave him the 

advantages of a good education, reared him 



454 



COMPENDIUM OF BlOGKAI'lIY 



life of usefulness and at this time lie 
■ egraph operator at Selba, Indiana. 
About one year since they t< « >k into their 
ehold a young i^irl by the nan;. 

5l ickberger, whom they expect to 
to womanhood. This kindness to the 
unfortunate speaks louder than words in 
praise of the generous natures of these two 
sincere Christians, natures full of love for 
the Masl 

Mr. XeiY was reared a Republican and 
remained loyal to that party until ahum fif- 
i, when by reason of its vacil- 
upon the liquor question he 
withdrew his allegiance and became a Pro- 
hibitionist, lie i- an uncompromising 
emy loon and believes that the only 

way to successfully cope with the e\ 
strong drink and crush the rum power in 
•r\ is li\ stringent legislation to 
d that the aw ful curse shall no longer 
i -in iy tin- bodies and 
of men and entail untold suffering upon the 
imiler the -and 
Iy Mr. XetY 1- a clean, pure man. never 
havii es tobao 

■nil-, while his private char- 
acter has always been unassailable. His lite 
may he safel) imitated by the young and the 
great amounl which he ha- done i'i 

the world will never be fully known until 

the la-t great day when the 1 k- -hall he 

opened and every man receive due credit for 
hi- w.rk-. his action- and his influence. 



ALBERT TUCKER. 



Thi- gentleman endid exampl< 

American fanner and 
With comparatively little to 



with, he ha- made a large fortune by shrewd 
and honorable business method-. He i- the 
leading farmer and -lock raiser of the county 
and one of the largest in the state. His farm 
i; almost like a principality, ami he i> cer- 
tainly a prince among farmer-. He 
younger brother of the old settler and farm- 
er. Horace Tucker, and i- one of the ablest 
financiers of this He 

was horn February 21, [831, anil i- thi 
of John and Mary (Warde) Tuckei 

of Horace Tucker elsewhere in this 
volume for account of the parent-. I The 
children - < parenl Horace. 

Aurelius, Albert, Serena. Regulus and I.i- 
vona. Albert Tucker was reared on his 
ther- farm and received an unusuall; E 
education, for his method- from his earliest 

childh 1 were to make t'' 1 

portunities. He excelled in mathen: 
thus ai an early day showing his readiness 
with figures. All his education was secured 
at the old - during the win- 

tnd his summers were spent at hard 
work on his father's farm. Hi- la-t winter 
of schooli passed when he wa- nine- 

teen years old. Thi- was in Richland coun- 
1 :io. where the old hoi When 

he wa- about twenty yeai 
r.arv. 1850, he concluded to -tart • -n t for 
himself and accordingly, in compam 
Abe Huston, came on foot t" Kosciusko 
count v. Indiana, hut 011 the way the roads 

thing awful and the tv 
men stopped and took a contract t" 

-inch stumps 
i'i -even days. By that time the roads had 
en and the) - continued their jour- 
Horace Tucker had preceded them. 
and with him they found a home until they 
could gel their bearings. Cpon hi- arrival 




^/(Z-^-Sl^ /l^f ^ 



2 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



455 



[iere Albert Tucker possessed twenty dollars 
in money. His father had previously 
bought a tract of one hundred and sixty 
acres in Franklin township, this count}', for 
five hundred and seventy-two dollars, and 
this land he gave to his son Allien. This 
gave the latter a fine start, hut it required 
time and a vast amount of labor. At first 
he took jobs at clearing other people's land 
and when he was not thus employed he 
worked at his own. and in this way made 
his first clearing in the dense forest which 
covered the land. His object in working 
out was to get money with which to stock 
his farm and pay his running expenses. Mr. 
Tucker, as he progressed in the world, put 
his money as fast as made into land and at 
one time owned twenty-seven hundred acres, 
worth about sixty dollars per acre, thus mak- 
ing his landed possessions aggregate about 
one hundred and sixty-two thousand dol- 
lars. If to this is added his stock and other 
interests, it will lie found that hie was worth 
fully one hundred and eighty thousand dol- 
lars, all made by himself except the first one 
hundred and sixty acres given to him by his 
father. This shows what can he done by 
the American farmer who is governed by 
honesty and sound business methods. At 
one time Mr. Tucker was employed by the 
officers of the Nickel Plate railway to secure 
the right of way through two townships. 
He bought the land where the town of .Men- 
tone now stand- and laid out the lots in 
188] and offered them for sale at from sev- 
enty-five ti i i me hundred dollars per lot. mak- 
ing considerable money at that venture. Ik- 
named the town Mentone, after a city in 
France. Since [897 lie has resided in Har- 
rison township. In [859 he began to raise 
stock of the better grades and ship the same 



when ready for the markets. lie made un- 
usual progress and put his money into land. 
At oik; time he was one of the heaviest deal- 
ers in Durham stock in the northern part 
of the state. His farming operations were 
a'si 1 very large. At 1 >ne time he had out four 
hundred acres of wheat, which yielded him 
ten thousand hushels and was sold. He had 
out as high as three hundred acres of corn. 
He has grazed on his own pastures as many 
as four hundred and twenty-five head of fat- 
tening cattle. This shows the enormous ex- 
tent of his operations. It is not necessary 
t< say that to manage this vast and complex 
industry it required ability of the highest 
order. Mrs. Tucker is a member of the 
United Brethren church. Mr. Tucker is a 
Republican, hut has never heen an office 
seeker. He is the strongest single business 
fat tor in this county and his honesty and 
good name are above reproach. 

On September 26, 1858, Albert Tucker 
married Mi~s Mary E. Frame, a young lady 
who was visiting her aunt. Mrs. Henry 
Black, where the subject first met her. ( hie 
child was born to this union. Alia M.. horn 
July 5, [859, who became the wife of Will- 
iam , and died in [895, being the 

mother of two children, Ocie and Earl. 
Subject's first wife died November 8, [860, 
and he then married Miss Sarah Blue, of 
Franklin township, and to this marriagi 
was horn John R.. horn May 5, [862, and 
died June 25, 1SO4. The second wife of 
Mr. Tucker died May 4, 1864, and he chose 
for his third wife Catherine McNeal, of 
Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, to whom 
he was married Januarj 14. [866. To this 
marriage was horn: Norman, horn August 
28, 1867, who upon reaching manhood first 
married a Miss Hanks and later married 






co.u/'/r.v/'/r.u of biography. 



Miss Nellie Creechbaugh, and lives in Lake 
township, tlii- county: Charles M., born 
July M>. [870, married Miss Sue Her and 
lives m Franklin township, being one of the 
wealthiest tanners of that township; Lee, 
born February 5, 1N74. possessed unusual 
mental gifts and undertook t" educate him- 
self better than the ordinary; he finished in 
1 tin- county and then went to 
Ann Arbor and entered the law department 
of the University of Michigan. Greatly to 
the sorrow of all who knew him. he died 
June in. 1892. lie was a boy of 
promise ami would have made his mark in 
the world had ii"t fate ruled otherwise. 
Curtis, born September 4. 1876, died Au- 
gust _•-'. 1N7N: Nellie, born September [6, 
1 ( ktober 16. [881 ; < >ra 1 .. bom 

1, [883, married Miss Nora Sarber 
ami lives in Franklin township; one other 
child, the eldest, died in infancy. The third 

ubject died April 21, 1889, and on 

1897, he married Mary < >dell, 

e maiden name was Baker, her parents 

Abraham ami Lethe (Huffman) 

Baki 



[ARLES BAUGHER. 

The gentleman whose brief life story is 

embodied in the following lines hails from 

the beautiful ami historic land of Germany, 

where his birth occurred on the .'4th day of 

[829 I le comes ■ f a family of farm- 

nd, until his retirement from life's 

active duties in 1902, followed tilling 

s.'il fur a vocation, in which he met with 

culminated in the handsome 

fortune which he now enjoys. Mr. 

rents were Charles ami Cath- 



erine Baugher, both natives of the fat! 
land, where their ancestors for untold g< 
ttions hail lived and acted their parts 
the world. In the year 1S47 Ch. 
Baugher, the father of our subject, and fam- 
ily came to the United State- and settled '11 
Tuscarawas county, Ohio, where he lived 
until [860, at which time h< 1 of his 

possessions there and moved to Kosciusko 
county, Indiana. locating in the townshi] 
Tippecanoe, where hi- subsequently 

took place. The si\ children of Chat 

atherine Ba 
John, Adam. Catherine and Peter, were hum 
in the "Id country. 

arles Baugher, of tin- review, \\ 
youth 1 >f less than 

arewell I > of his 

■ id and 1 the new world in 

quest of his fortune. In his native land he 
received a fair education and after becom- 
it 1 if the Unite IS e turned 

hi- attention t" carpentry, which trade he 
full' twed fi I le 'eft < Mil" in 

August, 1851, and camei" Kosciusko coun- 
ty, locating in Tippecanoe township. \C 

a carpenter w< in 

much demand. I [1 late with 

barely sufficient means t,, pay his way, 
his industrious habits, faithfulness and skill 
as a mechanic commended him t" the fa 
able consideration of tl 'he com- 

munity and it w. until he had 

ample work t" keep him busy tin 
] art of the time, lie continued carpentry 
>me time after coming t" this county, 
ami by carefully - 

■ purchase sixt) ti\ e acres of woodland 
in T twnship. upon which he 

eption of his 
wife, whom he married in the year 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



457 



She was formerly Miss Henrietta Gugeler, 
the daughter of German parents who set- 
tled in the above township in 1847. 

Mr. Baugher cleared sixteen acres of his 
land and then sold the place for a liberal 
price, investing the proceeds in one hundred 
and nineteen acres west of Webster, about 
thirty acres of which were in cultivation 
when he took possession. By industry and 
ci nsecutive effort he gradually enlarged the 
area of cultivable land until he had ninety 
acres in a high state of tillage, meantime 
adding other improvements in the way of 
barns, dwelling and outbuildings until the 
farm became noted as one of the most val- 
uable as well as one of the best conducted 
placo "f its size in the county. Subse- 
quently he increased his real estate holdings 
by purchasing seventy-two acres more in 
Turkey Creek township, for which he paid 
three thousand dollars, and in all at one 
time owned one hundred and ninety-one 
acres of as tine land as there was in the 
count), which at a conservative estimate 
was valued at forty dollars per acre, and 
a part of it much more, every penny of 
which he earned after becoming a resident 
of the county of Kosciusko. With im- 
provements since added, together with the 
natural increase in the value of the land as 
tin- country became more thickly populated 
and ii- resources developed, his holdings in 
the county represented at one time over ten 
thousand dollars, in addition to which he 
had other property, both real and personal, 
which made him worth considerably in ex- 
cess of that amount. Of late years he has 
divided a part of his land with his children. 
endeavoring t'> give them a good start in 
life. 

Mr. Baugher landed in America a p 



niless boy. but rich in possibilities. Actu- 
ated by a laudable determination to succeed, 
he carefully matured his plans for the future 
and by working carefully along the lines laid 
out was enabled in due course of time to 
reap the reward of his industry and well- 
directed labors. His work at his trade 
proved remunerative and when he turned his 
attention exclusively to agriculture his 
habits of thrift as well as the systematic 
manner in which he prosecuted his work 
smi ,n made him one of the most successful 
farmers of his township. He always po>- 
se-sed energv, resolution and determination, 
and early in life shaped his course according 
to the motto "If you do not find a way, make 
one." That his career since coming to In- 
diana has been a highly successful one is 
well known by all of his neighbors and 
friends, and of these he has many. He has 
accumulated ample means simply as the re- 
sult of the growth and exercise of such qual- 
ities as industry, thrift, good management 
and a practical knowledge of the underlying 
principles of business. He always had an 
end and aim in view and by steadily and 
persistently working thereto finally reached 
the desired goal and found himself the pos 
sessor of an ample competency for his de- 
clining years. 

Wisely concluding that he had spent 
enough of his life in the pursuit of material 
things. Mr. Baugher, in 1902. turned his 
farm over to other hands and bought a 
beautiful house and lot in North Webster, 
where, surrounded by all that can in any 
way minister to his comforts, he is now 
e 'ling- his days in quiet retirement. 

Mr. Baugher's character as a man and 
citizen is without a blemish and it is to such 
sterling people as he that our country i- 






COMPEXniUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



ted for n- ] nd pros- 

perity igricultura] and industrial lines. 

ind unassuming man, well en- 
id his many act- 
of kindness as wi fjenial manner 

won for him hearts 

of his fellow citizen-. 

ideally he has always been a Demo- 
crat, hut has never taken an active part in 
party affairs. He er held official po- 

sition, neither has he ever manifested a de- 
sire in thai direction, preferring the quiet 
ivrk of the farm t" the unsatisfactory l"t of 
the partisan and professional place hunter. 
In his religii • Methodi; 

which church his wif both 

j zealous workers and liberal contrib- 
utors. To Mr. and Mrs. B have been 
born -even children, only three of whom are 
§ at the present time: John A., a 
tanner of Tippecanoe township; William 
F., who in farming and 

ig in the township of Turkey Creek: 
ami Christian, whose home is in tin 

K.in- 

— ♦-•-• — 

GEORGE V W 

ire lew citizens of Jackson town- 
ship. Kosciusko county, Indiana, \\h" stand 
gh in the esteem of their neighb 

\ ance. I le was born in Mont- 
is men county, <>hii>. January i. 1827, 1- .1 
-nil of Michael ami Rebecca 1 Mills) Vance, 
ami is paternally of German descent, the 
nd father being the lir-t of the I'ani- 
il) to come to America. Helocatedin Penn- 
sylvania, whence, a few \ears late 

i t.. Montgomery canity. Ohio, where 
ed Rebe ' • .rent- 



were 111 nil \ew Jersey, of French descent, 
ami h.ul a family of thirteen children. 
Curless, John, 1 Mary, Ri Lucy, 

Harrison, Lucinda, Lettie A. Har- 
vey. William J. ami Joshua. 

Vance was reared a farmer and 
lived "ii the home place until October, 1S47. 
when he was united in marriage with Miss 
Margaret Milliken, a daughter of Matthew 
and Anna (Heckathora) Milliken. whose 
parents were native- of Pennsylvania. To 
Mr. and Mr-. Nance have been born nine 
children, of whom, however, there are only 
now living, namely: William J., who 
born December 4. 1848, first married 
Mary \\ ' her death WAS 

united in matrimony with Mar. 
who 1: Dani< 

uary 4. [851, married Catherine Bollinger, 
and lives in Starke county, and 

George \V.. born August 17. 1862, m 
Effa Reed, and lives in Laki lip. 

At his marriage Mr. 

.hi rented land in ' 'hi 
which he lived until 1854, when he came 
t. . Kosciusko county, Indiana, ami b 
a farm of ninety-seven acre- in -< 
deep in the • :i which he erected a 

hewed-log house, went manfully t" work 
and cleared off the timber from the land, 
and assiduously continued his labor until he 
had earned enough money t>> pay for it. He 
now ha- a tine brick dwelling and a sul 
tial barn and all necessary outbuildings, and 
dded ti> his 11- until he <>wns 

a half section, and at one time v. 
twelve thousand dollars, all of which 
cured through his own industry and 1 
lent management. 

In |X'htics Mr. Yam een a lifel 

crat ami has done all in hi- power to 




MRS. GEORGE VANCE 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



459 



promote the success of his party at the polls. 
He has never sought public office, but in 
the spring of 1882, being very popular with 
his part\', was elected township trustee on 
the Democratic ticket and served two years 
in such a manner as to show himself to be 
a must competent official and to the complete 
satisfaction of the public. In religion Mr. 
Vance has been a devout and consistent 
member of the United Brethren church for 
thirty years and has filled the position of 
trustee with commendable activity and zeal. 
He contributes freely to the maintenance of 
the church and uses his influence in every 
manner to advance its prosperity. He is a 
whole-souled gentleman and a public-spirited 
citizen, and is ready at all times to use his 
means and influence fur the promotion of 
such public improvements as will conduce to 
the comfort and happiness of his fellow citi- 
zens, and there is probably not another man 
in the township who is held in higher esteem 
bv the population, regardless of all sects. 
politics or professions. 



JOHN A. MOCK. 

This gallant ex-soldier of the Civil war 
and representative citizen of Kosciusko 
county, with his residence in North Webster. 
Tippecanoe township, was born in Tuscara- 
was c<>unt\'. Ohio, June 28, 1S40, a son of 
John and Lydia A. (Sechrist) Mock. The 
parents were of German extraction and of 
ante-Revolutionary American descent on the 
paternal side, and this fact may. to some 
extent, account for Mr. Mock's own martial 
impulse- and predilection-. 

George Mock, great grandfather of John 

28 



A., was a native of German}" and came to 
America at the period when the colonies 
were in the midst of their struggle to dis- 
encumber themselves from the rule of Great 
Britain. His sympathies were at once 
aroused in the cause of liberty and he be- 
came a private in the army of the heroic 
patriots and rendered good and faithful 
service until it had conquered a peace which 
blesses his adopted country with liberty un- 
til the present hour. At the close of hos- 
tilities the war-worn hero settled in Pennsyl- 
vania, where John Mock, the grandfather 
of John A., bad his nativity. This grandfa- 
ther grew to maturity in the Keystone state 
and was there twice married. To the sec- 
ond marriage John Mock, father of John A. 
Mock, was born. From Pennsylvania the 
grandfather migrated to Ohio, where he 
purchased a farm, on which he lived until 
1S47, when he came to Kosciusko county, 
Indiana, and. in April of the same year, set- 
tled one and one-half miles north of Web- 
ster on a tract of eighty acres which he had 
purchased while it was still deep in a forest 
and from which not a single tree had been 
cleared or even felled. Eventually, how- 
ever, he converted the forest-home into a 
desirable farm, on which he lived until 
death. 

John Mock, the father of John A., about 
the ^ante time that his father purchased his 
land in this county, bought eighty acres, 
also in the wilderness, where he resided 
seven years, then -old this farm and pur- 
chased and settled on what is known as the 
Quackenbush farm, where he passed his re- 
maining years. He was not only a farmer, 
but later became a preacher in the German 
Baptist church. To his marriage with Miss 
Sechrist were born the following named 



460 



coMrn.\pir.M of biography 



Martha, John A.. Polly, Eliza- 
beth. Samantha, Levi, Acia, Josep . Anna. 
Lavina, and Alfaretta. Of this family there 
living. 

n A. M<>ek was early trained t" a 
backwoods life and rendered much 
ance in clearing up his father'- eighty-acre 
farm, but did not neglect his attendance at 
the old log school house when opportunity 
was '. ' fctober -'-'. 1862, he enlisted 

in Companj '.. Second Indiana Volunteer 
Cavalry, under Capt. Lebo, was assigned t" 
tlie Army of the Cumberland, and fought 
at Shiloh; was in the Chattanooga cam- 
paign and at Chickamauga, and during the 
Rebel raid led by Gen. Joe Wheeler was n 
out of the saddle for fourteen consecutive 
days. The winter of 1863-4 was passed in 
nessee, and in the spring following 
his regiment joined Sherman in front of At- 
lanta. Georgia, which city was kept under 
Eje until its fall, when the regiment was 
sent : Nashville, Tennessee, under General 
Thomas, it was reorganized at Eastport, 
Mississippi, and sent with General VVils 
on his famous raid, then returned to Nash- 
ville, - finally discharged at Kd. 
field, Tennessee. July _'_'. 1865, the war hav- 
three months previously. Dur- 
»ervice Mr. Mock sustaii 
but und. and that a slight one, and 
was 1 duty. For his faithful service 
he ii"\\ receives a pension of eight dollars 
per month. 

( >:i hi- return to his father's farm in 
Tip township, Mr. Mock hired the 

place for one year and married Miss Hattie 
James, a daughter of John M. James. This 
lady was more than ordinarily well educated 
and for several terms had taught school in 
K county. \fter marriage Mr. 



Mock located in Pierceton, where he was 

ged in teaming for two years, and 
emigrated to Kansas and rented a farm for 
two \ears. but was driven out by the g 
hopper pest. He next went l" lluntsville. 
Alabama, where he farmed two years. 
Here his wife died, her remains being in- 
I in tie cemetery of that beautiful city 
and Mr. Meek then returned to Kosciusko 
county, Indiana, in 1873. To the man 
of Mr. and Mrs. Mock >>ne child. Victor 1>.. 
was h,.rn in Alabama, March <>. 1873; he is 
now engaged in general merchandising in 
North Webster, Indiana, ami was married 
t-i Ida Middleton, March 27, 1893. They 
have one child. Ethel Harriet, born Ju 
The mother of this young miss 
native of Indiana ami was born at North 
ter. August 16, [871, and is thedaugh- 
ije and Barbara (Jarrett) Mid- 
dleton, who were among the early pioneers 
of Kosciusko comity, and he is probably the 
now living in Tippecanoe 
township. In [876 the second marriag 
John A. Mock took place, the lady of his 
choice being Sarah Myers, who bore him 
one child, now deceased. Her own death 
urred in 1886. 

Mr. Mock, who started his business life 
with nothing, is now worth at least live thou- 
sand dollars clear. In politics he is an 
il Republican anil has frequently rep- 
resented his locality in county, state and con- 
ional conventions of his party. Hi 
notary public, and has tilled several public 

;s with credit to himself and to tl ■ 
isfaction of all concerned. During Presi- 
dent Harrison's administration he was post- 
master at North Webster; he has -, 
two full terms and a fraction of a term as 
township trustee and during his incumbency 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



461 



of this office erected four brick school-houses 
in rural districts and one in town; he was 
township assessor three years. Fraternally 
he is a member of John Murry Post No. 
124. (i. A. R., and formerly was commander 
of the North Webster post. He is recog- 
nized as one of the most energetic and enter- 
prising, as well as useful, citizens of Tippe- 
canoe township and enjoys the respect of a 
wide circle of friends, being a devout mem- 
ber of and ex-trustee of the Methodist Epis- 
copal church. 



DANIEL H. CARPENTER. 

In nearly every community are individ- 
uals who by innate ability and sheer force 
of character rise above their fellows and win 
fi >r themselves conspicuous places in pub- 
lic esteem. Such an one is the well-known 
gentleman whose name appears above, a 
man who has been identified with the history 
of Kosciusko count} - for over fifty-eight 
years, during which period his life has been 
closely interwoven with the material growth 
and development of his count}', while his ca- 
reer as a pn igressive man of affairs has been 
synonymous with all that is upright and 
honorable in citizenship. 

Many years ago Mr. Carpenter's pater- 
nal grandfather came to America from Ger- 
man}' and settled in Vermont where he 
reared a family and spent the remainder of 
his life, dying in a very early day. He had 
four sons and two daughters, one of the 
former being Harvey Carpenter, who left 
his native state when a young man and went 
to Xew York, where for a number of years 
he worked at his trade, that of a brickmaker. 



Subsequently he changed his residence t</ 
Huron county. Ohio, where, in addition to 
manufacture of brick, he carried on farming, 
meeting with success in both pursuits. He 
married while in York state and subsequent- 
ly moved to Huron county, Ohio, where his 
wife died, after bearing him seven children, 
namely: Angeline, Albert, Hannah M., 
Sarah L., Daniel H., Harris and Homer, the 
last two twins. Of the above children who 
once gathered around the happy hearthstone 
of Harvey and Mariah Carpenter, but one 
is living at the present time. Daniel H., 
whose name forms the caption of this arti- 
cle. Subsequently Mr. Carpenter married 
again and, as it proved, fortunately so, as 
the step-mother was kind and true and 
li ioked after the children that came under her 
care with the same tender and loving solici- 
tude a natural mother would bestow. 

In the year 1S44 Harvey Carpenter and 
family came to Kosciusko county, Indiana, 
and settled on a farm about two miles north 
of Webster, where they lived a few years, 
subsequently taking up their abode in the 
village of North Webster, where Mr. Car- 
penter engaged in the manufacture of brick. 
Pie continued that occupation as long as he 
was able to perform active labor, after which 
he lived a retired life until his death in the 
year 1852. He was a man of considerable 
local prominence, well read and widely in- 
formed, and for many years took an active 
interest in political affairs as a member of 
the old Whig- party. Subsequently he be- 
came a Republican and as such remained un- 
til the close of life. 

Daniel H. Carpenter was born Novem- 
ber 11, 1836. in Huron county. Ohio, and 
when eight years old was brought by his 
parents to Kosciusko county, Indiana, with- 



462 



CuMl'EXDIL'M OF BIOGRAPHY. 



iv the limits of which he has spent the great- 
er part of hi- life since that time. After at- 
tending the subscription f his 

until hi- sixteenth year, he 
i working with hi- father "ii the lat- 
' >rick yard and later turned his atten- 
tion t<> carpentry, in which he - [uired 
great efficiency and -kill. After working a 
few years for other parties, he bought "tit 
one of his employers, from which time for- 
ward he t«M .k contracts and in a short time 
became widely and favorably known as a 
--nil builder. 

Mr. Carpenter contracted for quit 
number of buildings in and around Web- 
ster, besides erecting many edifices of differ- 
ent kind- in various part- of the county, 
numerous barns, dwellings and public build- 
ings, which -till stand, atti 1- skill as 
an architect and workman. In the spri 
1859, in company with several other par- 
ties, lie started on the overland trip to far- 
away Oregon, driving through with three 
yoke of oxen and reaching the Pacific coast 
in the following < (ctober. During the jour- 
ney he met with many striking experiences 
and not a few adventures which if narrated 
in detail would make an article of absorbing 
interest. He remained two years in the far 
west, traveling over a great part of < >• 
California and several territories and visit- 
ing many interesting place- along the blue 
I'.i 1 lie sea. 

Mr. Carpenter returned east via the isth- 
mus of Panama to New Y'>rk city, thence to 
I iusko county, which he reached in due 
time. In i86i he started a wagon shop at 
Webster. He "iterated for a limited period 
alone, subsequently working at the business 
in connection with undertaking, in both of 
which hi- success was very encouraj 



After several years he closed the w 

to devote hi- entire attention to under- 
taking, which he continued to follow with 
_e financial profits until May, i<;<m. 

Meantime, on the 30th day of March, 
penter was united in mat 
to Miss Catherine C. Austin, daughter of 
and Elizabeth Austin, who moved to 
this part of Indiana a number of years 
from the State of < >hio. Immediately after 
his marriage he rented a small house in 
North Webster, but two year- later pur- 
cha-ed the property where he now resides, 
improving the place in many way- until it 
became one of the most beautiful and at- 
tractive homes in the town. 1 le continued to 
look after his various business interests until 
[865, in March of which year he enlisted in 
Company <i. Fifty-third Indiana Volunteer 
Infantry, joining the command at Indianap- 

nd proceeding forthwith to the I 
Unas, where the regiment did guard duty 
principally until the close of the war. Mr. 
Carpenter served until the cessation of hos- 
tilities, receiving his discharge October 4. 
1865, after which he returned home and 
again resumed the peaceful pursuits of civil 
By industry, close application and ju- 
dicious management of his business affairs 
he succeeded in accumulating a handsome 
competency and since the spring of [OX)! has 
been practically retired from active life. 

To Mr. and Mrs. Carpenter were l>om 
five children, namely: Alice C. born l>e- 
cember 13, [868, died December io, 1897; 
i lattie J.. I tecen ' 1871 . inarm 

A. Light, a merchant of Wilmot, Indiana, 
and they have one child Alice Ruth, born 
February [3, [900, the only grandchild; 
Stella A.. March 26, 1873, lives at home and 
for her father; James \ . 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



463 



March 4. 1X7(1, also lives at home, and Nor- 
man II., whose birth occurred September ,|, 
i88_\ is still a member of the home circle. 
The mother of these children departed this 
life mi the 15th day of January, 1888. She 
was a most estimable lady devoted to her 
home and family and by her sweet disposi- 
tion and beautiful moral nature won the love 
and esteem of a large circle of friends. She 
was a pious Christian, a member of the 
Methodist church, ami her religious faith, 
which did so much to make life cheerful and 
bright, sustained and soothed her when she 
exchanged earth for immortality. 

Air. Carpenter has always been more or 
[ess interested in public affairs and his in- 
clinations and reading naturally led him into 
the domain of politics, although he has never 
been what is popularly termed a partisan. 
His father and, indeed, the entire Carpenter 
family were originally Whigs and later Re- 
publicans and on attaining his majority he 
wielded the elective franchise in support of 
the latter part}-. From his twenty- first year 
until 187(1 he voted the Republican ticket. 
but from that time his political course be- 
gan to be somewhat independent. Bound 
by no party ties, he supported the candidates 
who in his judgment were best fitted for the 
offices sought, but this did not prevent his 
nomination by the local Democracy in the 
spring of 1879 for the office of township 
trustee. Possessing peculiar qualification- 
for the position, be developed great strength 
and. his friends from all parties rallying to 
his support, he was triumphantly elected, al- 
though the township had usually gone Re- 
publican by an overwhelming majority. So 
faithfully and efficient!} did Mr. Carpenter 
discharge his official functions that he was 
chosen his own successor in [883, but two 



years later he failed of election by only four 
\otes. During his first term he did much in 
the way of general improvements, among 
which were two fine school houses, and be- 
fore the expiration of his second term the 
number of new school buildings had been in- 
creased to five. It i> generally conceded, ir- 
respective of party ties, that the township 
has never been served by an .abler or more 
popular public servant, his official record be- 
ing without a blemish. In addition to the 
trusteeship, he also filled the office of con- 
stable a number of terms and had he seen fit 
to permit his name to go before the county 
convention he doubtless would have been 
rewarded with more important official sta- 
tions than those which he ably filled. From 
1854 to 1858 Mr. Carpenter carried the mail 
between "Warsaw and Millersburg, a dis- 
tance of thirty-one miles. He made two 
trips each week, going one day and return- 
ing the following day. Starting at Warsaw 
lie took in on the route Oswego, North Web- 
ster. Svracuse, Benton and Millersburg. 

Mr. Carpenter was made a Mason in 
1865 and has been an active and enthusiastic 
member of the Mystic Tie ever since, hold- 
ing several important official positions in the 
local lodge with which he is identified, sen - 
ing fi >r a period of twenty years as secretary, 
thirteen of which were in succession. While 
subscribing to no religious creed, he is a be- 
liever in revealed religion and has always 
considered the church a great and potential 
factor for the moral and spiritual uplifting 1 if 
humanity. He is a liberal contributor to all 
ecclesiastical organizations and benevolent 
enterprises, although liberal in his views and 
tolerant of the opinions of others. As a man 
Mr. Carpenter is easily the peer of any id* 
his fellow citizens in all that constitute up- 



4''4 



COMI'EXnU'M OF BIOGRAPHY. 



tnd correct citizenship. He is a sive am] representative men of the county of 
clo-e and intelligent observer, has rea<l Kosciusko. Mr. Kline is widely ami favor- 
much, an«l takes pains to keep himself well ably known in commercial circle-. Having 



informed upon current events. He i- quiet 
in demeanor, a thinker, and a man of deeds 



started in a lowly capacity, he ha- i 

to the front and, by faithful service and 



rather than words. He is essentially a man prompt discharge of long duty devolving 

of the people, because he has large faith in upon him. finally acquired a fortune ami be- 
humanity and is optimistic inall of his views, came one of the financially strong ami 
The high esteem in which he is held by the liable men of this part of the state. 
people of his community is a worthy tribute The Kline family had it- origin in Ger- 

to a most excellent man and his name ha- many. Hi- father. Henry Kline, was born 
ami always will occupy a conspicuous place in that country and when a lad of tender 
on the roster of Kosciusko county's progres- years came to America in company with a 
sive ami representative citizen-. brother, Jacob, ami settled in Tuscarawas 

county. Ohio. In his native land he had 
early been apprenticed to a tailor and after 
coming to this country worked at the trade 
I thio town, where he became acquaint- 
ed with a young lady by the name of Uiris- 
ispicuously identified with the busi- tina Baugher, who worked in the same shop 
ness and material interests of North Web- m which he found employment. She was 
and the township of Tippecanoe is the also from the fatherland and came to the 
subject of this -ketch and he has won for United States when quite young. The 



inilX KLINE. 



himself an honorable position in the business 
world and i- a distinctive type of tin 
cessful -elf-made man. Not a pretentious 



quaintance ripened into a tender attachment, 
which in due time terminated in man 

soon after which, in the spring of 1847, ,nc 



o! exalted life has been hi-, but one that has young couple migrated to Kosciusko county, 
been true to itself ami to which the biog- Indiana, and settled in the township of Tip- 
rapher may revert with feelings of respect pecanoe. 



ami satisfaction. Identified in a prominent 

way with agriculture and the mercantile 
business and having attained prestige by 
successive steps from a modest beginning, 
eminently tilting that a sketch of his 
iife. together with an enumeration of his 
leading characteristics, be given in tin- con- 
nection, as he i- recognized as a man of 
strong ami alert mentality, deeph intei 
in everything pertaining to the advancemi tj for work was tin- wonder of the 

of the community along material lines and neighborhood in which he lived. Shortly 
todaj 1- rei one of the pi after his arrival in Tippecanoe township 



Henry Kline came to this county a \»»>r 
man. but rich in a well defined purpose to 
make the most of such opportunities a- pre- 
-ented themselves. For some time lie 
worked at clearing land for the insignifi- 
cant sum of thirty cent- a day and would 
frequently work at hi- trade far into the 
night when he could find any tailorii 
do. He had a vie institution and his 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



465 



wife received a small amount of money 
which she inherited from a relative in Ger- 
many, and this enabled him to purchase 
fifty-six acres of land a short distance north- 
west of the town of Webster. Moving' to 
his purchase .Mr. Kline addressed himself 
manfully to the task of clearing- and pre- 
paring it for cultivation, and while thus en- 
gaged he continued of nights to ply the 
needle, by means of which sufficient money 
was earned to meet the modest expenses of 
his family. After clearing a goodly por- 
tion of the land he concluded to engage in 
the mercantile business at Webster, as the 
location was a favorable one for trade and 
the opening at that time decidedly auspi- 
cious. Accordingly he purchased a general 
stock and by carefully studying the wants 
of his customers, as well as by his agreeable 
manners, soon built up a large trade, which 
continued to grow in magnitude until he 
became one of the most successful country 
merchants in the county. Investing- his 
profits from time to time in land which in- 
creased rapidly in value with the growth and 
development of the country, he soon found 
himself on the high road to prosperity. He 
prosecuted his business successfully as long 
as he was able to manage his affairs and at 
his death, which occurred in 1886, his 
wealth was estimated as something over 
thirty-five thousand dollars. 

Mr. Kline was a typical representative 
of the successful German-American citizen 
and his influence upon the material and 
moral development of the community was 
decided and far-reaching. I lis liberal con- 
tributions to all religious and benevolent en- 
terprises became proverbial, and as a man 
and citizen none stood higher in public es- 
teem or did more to benefil his town and 



neighborhood. He was a pillar in the local 
Evangelical congregation and by far its 
largest contributor, giving freely his means 
to support the gospel and looking after the 
church with a kind and fatherly interest as 
long as he lived. In politics he was a Demo- 
crat, but he never had any inclination to en- 
ter actively into political affairs, contenting 
himself with voting his principles and let- 
ting others manage campaigns and hold the 
offices. Mrs. Kline survived her husband 
about two years, dying in 1888, respected by 
everybody in the neighborhood. She was an 
earnest Christian woman, zealous in church 
and charitable work, and proved a valuable 
helpmeet to her husband in his days of ad- 
versity and sharing in a modest and becom- 
ing manner the prosperity which came to 
him in later vears. 

Of the twelve children born to Henry 
and Christina Kline all are decease.! but 
the subject of this sketch, who was the 
tenth in order of birth. 

John Kline, of this review, was born 
December 3, 1846, in Tuscarawas county, 
< Ihio. When an infant he was brought to 
Kosciusko county, Indiana, and his earliest 
recollections are of the country home where, 
as soon as old enough, he was put to work 
in the woods and fields. He grew to young 
manhood strong and vigorous of body and 
thoroughly familiar with the important les- 
son of self-reliance. When only ten years 
old be began taking an active interest in the 
affairs of the farm, assisting to the extent 
of his ability his father, who at that time 
was in humble circumstances and strug- 
gling manfully to get a start in the world. 
Owing to the large amount of work to be 
done on the place, young John's education 
was neglected and he crew to maturity with 






IPENDIUM OF BI0GR.WI1Y. 



only a limited knowledge of hook-. Be- 
yond the ability to read fairly well and 
write a tolerably legible hand. his training 
did not go, but later, when he began life 
for himself, he t< >< »k down his old arith- 
metic and by close and careful study, aided 
iall) b) others, he mastered the or- 
dinary rules and became quite skillful as an 
mutant. The ease and rapidity with 
which he could solve intricate problems, 
pecially those pertaining to business, led his 
neighbors t" offer many of their affairs 
him for correct solution, especially such 

culating interest, making estimates and 
ether matters requiring more than ordinary 
mathematical skill. lie also read with 
avidity such books and papers a- fell into 
his hand- and thus in time became nol only 
practically well educated, hut widely in- 
formed upon genera] matters ami current 
events. 

In [867, when a little past twenty-one 
years of ige, Mr. Kline chose a companion 
in the person of Mi-- Elizabeth Zintzmas- 
ter. a native of Germany, who bore him 
en children: the oldest of these was 
Henrj I ., who married Aha Willis and re- 
es in North Webster; Frederick mar- 
ried Martha Hunt and resides in Pierceton; 
William married Margaret Makemson and 
makes hi- home in Whitley county, this 
te; Edwin !■'.. who married Minnie 
Hunt, i- a merchant doing business at 
Cromwell, Indiana; John }.. a miller 1>; 
trade, lives in North Webster; Marj 1 
unmarried, is -till an inmate <<i the parental 
lmme: and Elizabeth P., the youngest, died 
when about five months "Id. Mr. Kline af- 
forded his children advantages of which he 
wa- denied in youth, and they are all well 
educate 



About 1871 Mr. Kline began merchan- 
dising in North Webster and, like hi- fa- 
ther before him. soon won the confidence 
of the people and obtained a liberal share 
of patronage. He carried t large and care- 
fully selected -lock of general merchandise 
and for a period of fifteen years did a very 
lucrative business, becoming in that town 
one of the leading merchants of the county, 
aurally a business mind, he 
easily adapted himself to circumstances ami 
by careful management and judicious in- 
tercourse with the people built up a trade 
of large proportions. At the expiration of 
seventeen year- of active and successful 
commercial life he retired with a fortune 
of fifty thousand dollars, much of which 
has been invested in real estate in various 
part- of tin- county, his land- at the pres- 
ent time numbering nine hundred acre-. 
representing a value of over thirty thou- 
sand dollar-. He also own- g 1 business 

property in Webster, besides a beautiful 
and well-appointed modern home, and is di- 
rectly interested in enterprises which add 
verv materially to his large income. Mr. 
Kline ha- met with success far beyond that 
which attends the average tradesman and 
he i- cheered by the consciousness that 
nearly every dollar of his fortune came to 
him a- the legitimate result of close appli- 
cation to business and judicious mat 
ment. As a financier he ha- few equals, 
knowing well how to make investments so 
a- to insure the largest possible returns. 
While behind the counter he made a careful 
study of human nature and won his numer- 
ous customers by hi- -nave ami agreeable 
manner a- well as by fair and honorable 
dealing. He i- popular with all classes of 
people and by legitimate means ha- earned 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



467 



the high esteem in which he is today held 
bv the citizens of his town and surrounding 
country. 

On February 17, 1886, Mr. Kline was 
called upon to part with the wife of his 
youth, the faithful companion whose will- 
ing assistance and patient sacrifices did so 
much to cheer and encourage him in the 
days before fortune crowned his efforts. 
On April 2j, 1889, he was united in mar- 
riage to Miss Elizabeth A. Lindamood, 
whose parents, Noah and Lovisa (Foltz) 
Lindamood, were natives of Virginia. 
From that state they moved to Ohio, 
thence, after a six years' residence, to Kos- 
ciusko county. Indiana, settling on a farm 
northwest of North Webster. Noah Lin- 
damood became one of the large land own- 
ers and wealthy fanners of this section and 
was the first man to introduce drain tile 
into the township of Tippecanoe. He was 
an industrious man, in fact a hustler, and 
at his death left an estate worth somewhere 
in the neighborhood of nineteen or twenty 
thousand dollars. He was one of the lead- 
ing Republicans of Kosciusko county, a lib- 
eral contributor to churches and benevolent 
organizations, and left a reputation as an 
earnest Christian which his descendants 
prize more than they do the ample fortune 
which he accumulated. He departed this 
life on the 27th of May, 1889, and eight 
years later his wife followed him to the 
silent land. They had a family of five chil- 
dren, namely: Elizabeth A., Mary V., Ber- 
linda C.j Ophelia 0. and Thomas B., the 
last two named being deceased. Mrs. Kline 
was educated in the schools of Pierceton 
and Ligonier and for a number of years en- 
joyed the reputation of being one of Kosci- 
usko county's most successful teachers. 



She taught many terms and became widely 
and favorably known for her efficiency and 
skill in handling pupils and her ability to 
impart instruction. 

Mr. Kline is a Democrat in politics and, 
without being termed a partisan, has taken 
ci insiderable interest in party affairs. He 
is a charter member of the Masonic lodge 
at North Webster and for several vears 
held the office of secretarv in the same. His 
religious belief is in accord with the Evan- 
gelical creed, of which church he and wife 
are leading members and to the success of 
which they have contributed liberally of 
their means. They are active in religious 
and benevolent work and endeavor in their 
daily walk and conversation to live up to 
their high ideal of Qiristianity. They have 
a comfortable home and ample means to 
make life pleasant, and plenty of warm 
friends and agreeable associates. Their lot 
is indeed a pleasant one and the future has 
nothing to cause them a single fear. Mr. 
and Mrs. Kline have made the most of the 
world and the happiness which they now 
enjoy is the legitimate result of lives di- 
rected and controlled by high moral re- 
solves and correct principles. 



FRANK MOREHEAI). 

This gentleman now figures as one of 
the enterprising farmers of Tippecanoe 
township, but in former years, during the 
troublous period from 1861 to [866, his 
record as a brave defender of the national 
union helped to make up the iiistorv of the 
most sanguinary struggle ever waged be- 
tween the forces of freedom and treason. 



*68 



COMPEXI'ICM OF BIOGRAPHY 



Jn the peaceful pursuits of civil life lie has 
faithfully done his share in the development 
of his section of the state and as a native 
s. .11 of Kosciusko county few have done 
more to advance its resources, materially 
and otherwise. Such men as he constitute 
the mainstays of the commonwealth, ac- 
cording!) it should be the duty of every 
true lover of his country t" encourage the 
formation of character that builds up and 
sustains the best interests of the state. 

Joseph Morehead, father of the subject 
of this sketch, was one of the earliest 
tiers of Kosciusko county. He came here 
in 1839 from his native state, Virginia, and 
entered two tract- of land, one consisting 
of eighty-four and a fourth acre- and the 
other, a little to the south, containing a 
quarter-section, lie erected his cabin on 
the former tract and began the life of j 
pioneer, subjected to all the hardships and 
vicissitudes characteristic of that early 
period. He remained where he originally 
settled until his death. The family suhse- 
quently changed their residence to the other 
place heretofore mentioned. His wife. 
se maiden name was Nancy Champion, 
lived until the year 1897, spending the lat- 
ter pari of her life with her son. the sub- 
f tin- review. They were the parents 
of -i\ children, live sons and one daugh- 
ter, the majority of whom grew to mature 

yeai 

Frank Morehead was horn on the 
inal homestead in Tippecanoe township. 

May 24, 1842, and spent his childh 1 and 

youthful years in close touch with nature 

farmer's boy. In such schools as were 

then common throughout northern Indiana 

ed 1 limited education, his prin- 

m inten-elv prac- 



tical character received while vvorkii \ 
the woods and fields and later by reading 
such ltooks and papers as he could procure. 
He proved a valuable assistant on the farm 
until the breaking out of the great Kel>el- 
lion, when he responded to his country's 
call for volunteers, enlisting Septembet 
[861, in Company B, Thirtieth Indiana 
Volunteer Infantry. He was mustered i>i 
..t Fort Wayne and, proceeding thence i<> 
tlie state capital, was soon sent to the front 
in Kentucky, the Thirtieth forming pari of 
Buell's command during the campaign fol- 
lowing the battle of Shiloh. Mr. Morehead 
met the enemy on many bloody fields, 
among the more noted of which may he 
cited Corinth, Stone River, Chickam 
and nearly all of the hotly contested en- 

nents of the celebrated Atlanta cam- 
paign to Jonesboro, where his period of en- 
listment expired. After his discharge he 
returned home. hut. the war continuing in 
all its fury and the government needing the 
services of every able-bodied man. especially 
trained soldiers, he felt it his duty to 
tender his aid towards crushing the 
midable hosts that were putting forth every 
effort to dismember the Union. A' 

brief stay, he entered the army 

second time as member of Companj <i. 

Fifty-third Indiana Volunteers, which was 

ied to duty at Alexandria. Virginia, 
hut which did not participate in much active 
service. Returning to Indianapolis at the 

of the war. he was there dischi 
after which he came home and once more 
resinned the pursuit of agriculture in his 
native O unity. 

Mr. Morehead passed through many 
erous and trying experiences and was 
twice wounded, the first time in the f 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



469 



Stone River, and at Chickamauga, where 
one of his hands was pierced by a musket 
ball. These wounds, though exceedingly 

painful, were by no means serious, neither 
did they long incapacitate him from active 
service. His record as a soldier is without 
spot or blemish, as he was ever ready for 
duty and was never known to shirk a re- 
sponsibility or turn his back upon danger 
in the face of the enemy. On account of 
wounds received he is now drawing a 
monthly pension of ten dollars, a sum 
ridiculously inadequate when his services 
are compared with those of others who are 
drawing much larger sum- from the gov- 
ernment. 

Since the war Mr. Morehead has carried 
on farming in Tippecanoe township and 
now own- a comfortable and well-stocked 
place, supplied with many of the conven- 
iences of life. His career as a civilian is 
equally as honorable as his record on the 
march, in the trying campaign or on the 
field of carnage, discharging in full his duty 
as neighbor and friend and. as nearly as 
possible, living up to hi- idea] of citizenship. 
Through his own exertions and persever- 
ance he has earned a fair competence, he- 
sides winning a reputation which places him 
among the honorable and upright men of 
ommunity. 

Mr. Morehead was married. March 27, 

-. to Mi-- Caroline Lesslie. a union 
1 with six children, three sons and 
three daughter-: all of the latter are de- 
',. a- i- also the mother, who departed 
this life in 1897. The sons are Joseph P.. 
Everett P. and Lloyd II.. the last named 
married and living at home with his father. 

Mr. Morehead i- a Republican and .-•.- 
such has rendered his party efficient service 



by always voting his principles. In religion 
he is a Methodist, belonging to the North 
Webster congregation, with which his wife 
was also identified. In the year 1865 he 
joined the Masonic fraternity and has been 
an enthusiastic member ever since, having 
tilled important positions in the lodge to 
which he belongs. Mr. Morehead has led 
a quiet life and his integrity has always 
been unassailable. He i- one of the sub- 
stantial and worthy men of his community, 
with no ambition for anything but the 
sphere of a private citizen, and his many 
friends bear willing testimony to his amia- 
ble qualities and sterling characteristics. 



ORLAXDO F. GERARD. 

This well-known citizen of No 
Webster. Kosciusko county. Indiana, is a 
native son of this county and dates his birth 
from the .25th day of March. 1859. Isaac 
Gerard, the subject's father, was born in 
Ohio, but when a young man of twenty- 
three came to Kosciusko count}- and 
tied in the township of Tippecanoe, where 
he worked at his trade of carpentering. 
He was a fine mechanic and nearly all the 
frame houses on the original plat of Web- 
ster were erected by him. besides a number 
of barns, dwellings and other edifices 
various parts of the country. He had not 
been long in the county until he formed the 
acquaintance of Mi-- Louisa Kirkpatrick. 
daughter of one of the early settlers, and the 
attachment soon ripened into love, which in 
due season led to marriage. Isaac and 
-1 Gerard began housekeeping in 
North Webster and continued to live there 



4/-o 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



about two years, when they took up their 
abode on a farm in Harrison township, 
where, in addition t" working at his trade, 
Mr. Gerard also carried <>n the pursuit of 

ulture. He purchased the place. 
sistin§ »htj acres, and made it his 

In .me until the death of his wife in 
at which time he broke up housekeeping 
and lived among his children. Mr. and 
Mrs. Gerard had five children: Lawrence 
R., who married Clara Leslie, is a merchant 
doing business in Noble county, this state; 
Orlando F. and Malissa L. are twins, the 
latter now the widow of O. E. Little, for- 
merly of this county; she lives in the town 
of North Webster; Marcellus married Re- 
becca Cook and lives in South Whitley: 
William 1'... the youngest, married Lizzie 

1/ and at the present time is eng 
in the livery business at Pierceton. 

The Subject of this review was but five 

• •Id when deprived of a mother's 
guidance and solicitude, after which he and 
his twin sjstcr became inmates of their 
grandparents' home. Under their hospit- 
able roof he grew to maturity, meanwhile 
attending the district schools and when not 
thus engaged assisted with such work as 
was required on the farm where his youth- 
ful years were s|K-m. lie remained with his 
relatives until his marriage, which was 
solemnized with Miss Lavina Mock, <1 
ter of John Mock, who was one of the 
early settlers and prominent citizens of the 
township of Tippecanoe. For one year fol- 
lowing their nuptials Mr. and Mr- G 
lived on the Mock farm and at the expira- 
tion of that period rented a place in Tippe- 
e township, on which they reside 1 
about th( length of time, then mov- 

. Whitlej count) Mr. Gerard farmed 



in that count) n and then pur- 

1 forty acres m Tippecanoe township. 
i' which he moved in [883 and which lie 
cultivated until 1885, when he abandoned 
agricultural pursuits ami accepted a clerk- 
ship with J. F. Bockman, who kept a 
eral store in the town of North Webster. 
After continuing in the capacity of - 
man three years he and J. A. Mock became 
partners and soon afterwards erected a 
hrick block in North Webster, which 
stocked with a miscellaneous as 
nient of merchandise ami the following 

en years ,lj,l ;i large ami lucrative 
business, during four years of which time 
the subject was assistant postmaster. 
sequently Mr. (ierard went to Piei 
and worked for one year in the general 
st. .re of William McXamara. hut afterward 
returned to North Webster, where, after 
gnation of Jacob Dullinger as post- 
■ r, he was appointed to till the vacancy 
and had charge of the office until June _•. 
1902, when he resigned, having been 
ularly appointed in May. 1896, and reap- 
pointed in October, 1901, proving himself 
a most capable and obliging public servant. 

Mr. Gerard is a man of splendid ! 
ness ability and has managed with judg- 
ment and skill the various enterpris< 
which he has been engaged, lie has always 
endeavored to be in sympathy with the best 
interests of the community in which he lives 
ami his public spirit lias prompted him to 
take a leading part in many movements hav- 
ing for their object the general good. Not- 
withstanding a rather unpropitious fo 
ning, by assiduous attention to business ami 
probity of life he surmounted man) ob- 
stacles in the pathway of success and | 
nally forged to the front until he not only 



COMPEXDIL'M OF BIOGRAPHY. 



47 1 



found himself the possessor of a handsome 
property, but occupying a conspicuous 

place in the confidence and esteem of the 
public as well. He has assisted in promot- 
ing the prosperity of the thriving town in 
which he now resides, at the same time aid- 
ins; greatly in developing the resources of 
his township and county, using his means 
as well as his influence to bring this highly 
favored section to the notice of investors 
and home seekers. 

Mr. Gerard, although a man of wide 
information and strong convictions, is not 
v. hat would lie termed a politician, al- 
though he has always manifested a lively 
interest in party affairs, voting the Repub- 
lican ticket ever since attaining his majority. 
He joined the Methodist church a number 
of years ago and ever since becoming a 
member has been earnest and zealous' in 
religious work. He has been class leader in 
the congregation worshipping at North 
Wehster. also superintendent of the Sun- 
day school, in l.oth of which capacities his 
services have been very effective in pro- 
moting the cause of religion in the com- 
munity. His daily life, which is in per- 
fect harmony with the faith he professes, 
hears eloquent testimony to the genuineness 
and force of the gospel as a great moral and 
spiritual agency. As a neighbor and citi- 
zen he has long enjoyed an enviable reputa- 
tion and his career throughout lias been suc- 
cessful and remarkably free from criticism, 
which fact is due largely to his energy of 
disposition, uniform probit) of character 
and an earnest desire to discharge his everv 
duty as he shall answer to his conscience 
and his ( iod. 

Mr. and Mrs. Gerard have not been 
1 lessed with any children of their own. hut 



they have furnished a home for an adopted 
daughter. Bertha Gerard, who was horn in 
the year 1887. This young lady has been 
reared and educated under their care and 
she is the recipient of the same favors and 
solicitude that would lie meted out to a 
child of their own flesh and blood. Mrs. 
Gerard is her husband's able and faithful 
assistant in his religious and moral work 
f< >r the good of the community. 



XAT. \Y. KLIXE. 



The history of Kosciusko county is not 
a very old one. It is the record of the 
steady growth of a community planted in 
the wilderness within the last century and 
has reached its magnitude of today without 
other aids than those of industry. The peo- 
ple who redeemed its wilderness fastnesses 
were strong-armed, hardy sons of the soil 
w in 1 hesitated at no difficulty and for whom 
hardships had little to appall. The early 
pioneers, having blazed the path of civili- 
zation to this part of the state, finished their 
labors and passed from the scene, leaving 
the country to the possession of their de- 
scendants and to others who came at a later 
period and builded on the foundation which 
they laid so broad and deep. Among the 
latter class is the prominent farmer and en- 
terprising citizen by whose name this article 
is introduced. While his arrival was n A 
as early as some, yet he came in the forma- 
tive period and has done much to develop 
and advertise to the world the wonderful 
resi mrces of a count} - that now occupies a 
proud position among the most progressive 
and enlightened sections of Indiana. 



COMPENDIUM OP BIOGRAPHY. 



Xat. \\ . Kline was Kirn Maj 13, 1831, 
in Tuscarawas canny. Ohio, ami is 
of John and Elizabeth Kline, nativi 
Pennsylvania and New Y"t'k. respectively. 
In an early day the ancestors of the Kline 
family in America tame from Germany and 
settled in Bedford county, Pennsylvania, 
where the subject's father was bom and 
grew to young manhood. With his parents 
he then went to Tuscarawas county, Ohio, 

when that part of the State was a new and 
comparatively undeveloped country and 
there lived the life of a successful farmer. 
marrying Elizabeth Musser, whose parents 
were also among the early pioneers. Sub- 
sequently he bought the old Musser home- 
stead, consisting of "tie hundred and fifty 
, where he reared his family and upon 

which Kith he ami his wife afterwards died. 

Eleven children were born to |<>hn and Rliz- 
abeth Kline. Timothy, Samuel <".. John, 
Philip, Jacob, Michael. Daniel. Xat. W. and 
three, one son and two daughters, that died 
in infancy. 

Xat. W. Kline was reared t" manhood 

in hi- native county and Mate and early de- 
cided to follow agriculture for a life work. 
When a young man he married Mi-- Hen- 
rietta Van Dawson, of Stark county, Ohio, 
and for one and a half year- thereafter 
lived on the home place which he cultivates 
cm the -hare-. At the expiration of that 
time hi- wife wa- called to the other world, 
and subsequently, March. 1853, he entered 
into the marriage relation with Mi-- Cath- 
erine Zintsmaster, daughter of John and 
Philipine 1 lice ) Zintsmaster, who came to 
this country from Germany when Mrs. 
Kline wa- one year old. These parent- set- 
tled in Stark county, Ohio, and there the 
subject's wife grew to maturity and re- 



ceived a good education in the best -ch 
that part of the state afforded. 

In the fall of 1854 Mr. Kline moved t<> 
Kosciusko county. Indiana, and settled in 
Turkey ''reek t<.wn-hip on a piece of 1. 
which he received in exchange for his in- 
teresl in a saw-mill in Fulton county. Ohio. 
lie at that time also owned eighty acre- 
land in Pulton comity. Ohio, forty of which 
were received h\ hi- father a- a grant for 
services ldier in the war of [812 and 

which he had purchased fn m his father. 
Subsequently Mr. Kline traded his land in 
1 )lno for eighty acre- adjoining his original 
eighty in this county, making in all a farm 
•ne hundred and sixty acre- and in one 
body, and in 1864 he purchased eighty a. 
more adjoining thi- on the east. Hi- pi 
in Turkey Creek township consisted of two 
hundred and forty acre-, upon which but 
little improvement worthy of mention hail 
■ been made prior to his taking possession. 
In due time, by hard and long-continued 
toil, he cleared and fitted for cultivation 
seventj and built a tine residence, 

which wa- destroyed by lire while he 
absent in the army. Some time after hi- 
vi turn from the war Mr. Kline -old the 
place and purchased a tine farm of one hun- 
dred ami seventy- four acre- a short dis- 
tance south of North Webster, on which he 
erected a good dwelling and other build- 
ings, making it one of the best cultivated 
and most valuable farm- in that part of the 
county. Subsequently lie bought an addi- 
tional hundred and fort} acre- and -till later. 
by trading two hundred and sixty-nine a. 
for eighty acre-, lie received four thousand 
dollars in cash, and from the -ale of another 
hundred-and-twenty-acre tract he received 
jit thousand dollars in money. Mean' 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



473 



Mr. Kline came into possession of land in 
Missouri and in the spring- of 1883 he 
moved to Jasper county, that state, where 
he continued to reside until 1900. when he 
returned to Kosciusko county and pur- 
1 the home in North Webster which 
he m >w 1 'Ccupies. 

Mr. Kline has been a successful farmer 
and stuck raiser, everything prospering to 
which he turned his hand. By skillful man- 
agement he acquired a large amount of val- 
uable land in this county and elsewhere. 
He possesses ability of a high order and the 
prosperity which has always attended him 
demonstrates a si mud judgment and clear 
insight into financial matter- such as few 
farmers attain. 

When the great Civil war broke out Mr. 
Kline showed his patriotism and love of 
country by enlisting in Company B. Thir- 
tieth Indiana Volunteer Infantry, mustering 
at Fort Wayne and proceeding via Louis- 
ville to Tennessee, where the regiment 
joined the command under General Buell 
in time to take part in the bloody battle of 
Shiloh. On the 7th day of April. 1862, 
Ik received a painful wound on the left leg 
which disabled him for further active serv- 
ice; as si ,011 a- sufficiently recovered he was 
sent to Indiana to recruit for the regiment 
and while thus engaged secured twenty-two 
men from North Webster and vicinity and 
sent them to the front. He did this w< irk 
while suffering greatly from his injury, be- 
bliged to use crutches at the time and 
with the aid of these getting about only with 
much difficulty. By reason of his disability 
he did not complete his term of enlistment, 
receiving his discharge at Indianapolis on 
the 15th day of January. 1863. Mr. Kline 
proved a brave soldier and his record is re- 



plete with duty gallantly performed. I It- 
suffered much for his country, having never 
recovered from his wound, and at the pres- 
ent time he receives from the government a 
01 of ten dollars per month. 

Since the war Mr. Kline has devoted 
himself closely to his business affairs, with 
results already indicated. He is now one 
of the financially strong and reliable men 
of the county, also one of its most intelli- 
gent and enterprising citizens. Deeply in- 
terested in the material development of his 
township, he takes an active part in public 
affairs and lends his influence to any and 
all enterprises which promise to promote 
the general prosperity of the community. 
He has been a supporter of the Republican 
party ever since old enough to vote and in 
his younger days took quite an active part 
in politics, but of late contents himself with 
merely exercising the elective franchise. 
He served four years as justice of the peace 
and filled the office of township trustee 
eight term-, during which time he did much 
in the way of improvements, devoting con- 
siderable attention to the highways, bridges, 
etc.. besides building and equipping some 
of the best schoolhouses in the county. His 
official record is without a blemish and the 
public, irrespective of political affiliations, 
bears testimony to the able and impartial 
manner with which he looked after the peo- 
ple's interests. 

Mr. Kline's first marriage was without 
issue. His present wife has borne him 
seven children, namely: Alice C. wife of 
T. E. Mcgranahan. of Joplin, Missouri; 
John R. married Fannie Gawthrop and lives 
i:i the town of North Webster: Nathaniel 
J., an attorney at law. practicing his pro- 
fession at North Webster, married Susan 









■nunm • • 

mar - " »-■ 

- 

■ re 

i 

"'■ 










W. W. WORLEY FAMILY GROUP 



COMPEXDIL'M OP BIOGRAPHY. 



475 



then branched out into the railroad busi- 
ness. He learned telegraphy in Silver Lake 
and worked as supply operator and agent in 
various towns on what is now the Michigan 
division of the Big Four railroad for about 
a year. He then took an agency at Urbana, 
next at Silver Lake and then accepted the 
agency at Claypool, in which position he re- 
mained for twelve years. During all this 
time he was especially favored with success 
and health, which allowed him to he on duty 
constantly, never losing a month's pay. He 
was shipping agent also and in reward for 
his faithful attention to all duties he was 
held in high esteem by the officials. He re- 
signed this position to accept the office of 
trustee of Clay township, having been easily 
elected to that place on the Republican ticket. 
His term of five years and three months ex- 
pired in September. 1900. During this time 
he built the new school house in Claypool, a 
high school was added and the school 
graded, making the educational advantages 
of Claypool second to none in the county. 
excepting those of Warsaw. In the im- 
provement of roads he erected the first stone 
arch bridges ever used in the township, and 
his example is still followed. 

He lias been active in political work for 
years and is considered one of the public- 
spirited men of the town. In April. 1889, 
he invested in his home farm, which, with 
hired help, he has improved and cultivate 1. 
having cleared considerable of the land and 
laid tile drain. This farm contains one 
hundred and forty-five acres. He own- a 
second farm of eighty aero, both being de- 
voted to stock farming. This business has 
become Mr. Worley's specialty ami lie take- 
great pride in raising line cattle, sheep and 
hogs. As a member of the firm of Cald- 

29 



well, Leigh & Worley, he has handled a 
great deal of stock, buying, selling and ship- 
ping. He is also a member of the firm of 
Worley, Rhoades & Jamisen, which deals in 
horses. Their barns are located on a farm 
and they buy horses for the eastern mar- 
ket, which has proven a profitable business. 
During 1900 the firm handled seven hun- 
dred horses. 

Mr. Worley was married. February 20, 
1886, to Mis- Angynettie Bloom, of Clay- 
pool. She was born in Kosciusko county, 
Indiana. November J4. 1864, her parents be- 
ing John and Nancy ( Berkstresser ) Bloom, 
both now deceased. Her father was born 
in Hollensberg. Germany, April j_\ 1820, 
and died at the home of his daughter. Mrs. 
Worley, in February. 1901. He followed 
the pursuit of farming, and in politics was 
a Democrat. Mrs. Bloom was born in 
Yates county. Xew York. September 18, 
1825. and died March 31. 1894. Both were 
members of the German Lutheran church. 
Mrs. Worley was educated in the common 
schools of this county and is a lady of 
marked intelligence ami genuine worth. By 
her wise counsel and encouragement she has 
proven a true helpmate to her husband, as- 
sisting him nobly in the establishment and 
beautifying of their home. She is a mem- 
ber of the United Brethren church, with 
which he is also in sympathy. They have 
four children. Winnie Winona, Faun Edna, 
Frankie Foss and George Eleanora. Win- 
nie will graduate in the class of hjoj at 
Claypool, Faun is a member of the seventh 
grade, Frankie is a member of the fourth 
grade and all have taken musical instruc- 
tion. 

Mr. and Mr-. Worley possess ne of the 
complete and best-selected family li- 






MPENDIUM OF BIUUUAI'UY 



braries in the southern part of the county. 
Encyclopedias, histories, biographies and 
works by all the leading authors gra< 
shelves of their library ami prove an im- 
portant adjunct to the education of their 
children. Fraternal!) Mr. Worlej bi 
to L dge X". 73, F. & A. M., at Warsaw, 
and is also a charter member of Tent No. 
83, l\. ( ). T. M.. at Claypool, having held 
at offices of record keeper, chaplain and ser- 
geant. Mrs. Worlej is a charter member of 
Tent \"m. 103, I. O. T. M., at Claypool, 
and has held the positions of chaplain and 
commander, being at present inside 
guard. 



DA\ ID HAMMAN. 



The gentleman whose name initiates 
this article is a native of < >hio, a state which 

•.•en the cradle of much of our w< 
civilization and upon which the common- 
wealth of Indiana Iris largely drawn for 
its in.'-', enlightened, enterprising and pro- 
gressh e citizenship. 

Going still further hack in the family 
hfetory, it is learned that his paternal grand- 
father in an early day left the vine-clad hill 
of Germany and joined the tide of emigra- 
tion to the free land of America, settling 
in Pennsylvania, where Jacob Hamman, fa- 
ther of the subject, was born and reared. 
In young manhood Jacob took up his abode 
in Tuscarawas county, Ohio, and there met 
and married Elizabeth Mock, who bore him 
eieven children, nearly all of whom grew 
to mature years and became useful men and 
women. In 1849 he came t" Kosciusko 
county and settled in Turkey Creek town- 
ship, where he purchased a farm upon 



which he spent the remainder of his life. 
he and his g 1 wife dying after reaching 

beyond those allotted to the majority 
of mankind. 

David Hamman was bom February 16, 
in Tuscarawas county, Ohio, and at 

_<.■ of twenty accompanied hi> parents 
to the new home in the county of Kosciusko. 
Prior to that time he attended such sub- 
scription schools a> his native county af- 
forded, but after coming to Indiana he re- 
ceived m> educational training worth) of 
note, his time being taken up with such 
labor as an unimproved farm in a com- 
parative!) new country required. From hi* 
arrival in Kosciusko until the present day 
he has been intimately concerned with the 
best interests of the country as one of the 
foremot promoters of its prosperity and 
substantial development, and he now occu- 
| ies a conspicuous place, not only as a lead- 

irmer of the community in which he 
resides, but also as one of Tippecanoe town- 
ship's estimable and representative citizens. 
Mr. Hamman remained with his parents 
until twenty-nine years of age, meantime, 
from his twenty-first year, farming the 
home place f'T a part of the proceeds ami 
looking after his father's interests. In Au- 
gust, 1 of ki. he was united in marriage to 
Miss Sarah M. Pontius, daughter of Abra- 
ham and Sarah M. (Rolland) Pontius, na- 
tives of Pennsylvania, who in the fall < >f 
1S44 moved to Kosciusko county and set- 
tled in the township of Tippecanoe. Some- 
time previous to his marriage Mr. Hamman 
bought a place in Tippecanoe and to it he 

k hi- bride and began life in the wo. 
but little improvement having been made 
on the farm before he set up his first do- 
mestic establishment. By close application 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



477 



he established those habits of industry and 
frugality which insured his success in later 
years. With the able assistance of his es- 
timable companion he sunn extended the 
area of cultivable land and in due time 
found himself upon the high road to pros- 
perity with a g'ood farm in his possession 
and many of the comforts and conveniences 
of life surrounding' him. Mr. Hamman 
has always followed agricultural pursuits 
for a livelihood and is regarded as an enter- 
prising and typical farmer. His thorough 
system of tillage, the good order of his 
fences, the well-cared-for condition of his 
fields, the commodious and comfortable 
buildings all demonstrate his successful 
management and substantial thrift. Since 
his marriage he has lived on the farm which 
he now owns and his long residence in the 
community has won for him a very high 
place in the confidence and esteem of his 
many neighbors and friends. In every re- 
lation of life he has always been regarded 
as a representative citizen, discharging 
every duty devolving upon him with com- 
mendable fidelity and proving himself 
worthy the large measure of respect with 
which he is treated by all who know him. 
Mr. Hamman has the satisfaction of 
knowing that every dollar he owns has been 
earned by his unaided efforts. Having a 
large family to provide for, his father could 
do little for his children when they started 
out to make their own fortunes, consequent- 
ly each one was obliged to rely entirely 
upon his individual resources. Endowed 
with a liberal share of good common sense 
and possessing sound judgment, backed by 
a well founded purpose to succeed, Mr. 
Hamman has labored with the object pri- 



marily in view of making a good home for 
himself and family and acquiring a com- 
petency for his declining vears. This laud- 
able desire has been realized and he is now 
in easy circumstances with a sufficient sur- 
plus for the proverbial "rainy day," which 
sooner Of later comes to every individual. 

Mr. and Mrs. Hamman are the parents 
of six children, namely: Daniel, deceased; 
Lucinda, wife of William Smalley, of Alex- 
andria, this state; Amanda married John 
Brown, of Turkey Creek township ; Will- 
iam married Dollie Angel and lives on the 
old farm; Ira married Elizabeth Arnold and 
follows farming and stock raising in Xoble 
county; and Jesse, a farmer of Tippecanoe 
township, married Miss Eva Rolston. 

Having accumulated a sufficiency of the 
world's goods to render the remainder of 
his and his wife's days comfortable and 
free from care, Mr. Hamman turned his 
farm over to his son and is now practically 
retired from active life. He has always 
been deeply interested in whatever tends to 
promote the prosperity of his township and 
county and to him as much as to any one 
man is the community indebted for the ma- 
terial development for which it has long 
been noted. He has also used his influence 
in behalf of all moral and benevolent enter- 
prises, being a friend and liberal patron of 
the church, which he believes to be the most 
potential factor for substantial good the 
world has ever known or will ever know. 
The German Baptist denomination repre- 
sents his religious belief, to which excellent 
body both himself and wife belong. As a 
good and intelligent citizen he takes much 
interest in political affairs, voting with the 
Republcan party, the principles of which he 



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an: i • «:e»i irr»: 

sat -«w atrrv - :-- 

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COMPEXDICM OF BIOGRAPHY 



479 



numerous instances of trouble growing 

of incorrect surveys which marked the early 

settlement of West Virginia and several 
other southern states. Realizing that he 
would be obliged to turn the land over to 

egal owner. Mr. Johnson made the 
most of a had situation by selling his im- 
provements to another party and in 1833 
coming to the new country of northern In- 
diana. Leaving his family in "West Vir- 
ginia, he started on a tour <>i observation 
with the object in view of rinding a f 

■cation where land could be cheaply 

obtained. He walked through the wilder- 

Ihio and Indiana until he reached 

what is now Plain township. Kosciusko 

county, where he met some friends from 

•Id neighborhood in West Virginia, 
with whom he stayed until he traveled • >ver 
a large part of the surrounding country, 
noting its advantages and disadvantages as 
a place for a home. Being well pleased 
with the richness of the land, he selected a 
location on the government domain and then 
started on his return trip of five hundred 
miles, which he completed in just ten and 
a half days. Remaining that winter with 

imily, he returned to Indiana the fol- 
lowing spring and pur out a crop of corn on 
Turkev Creek prairie, after which he again 
went back to West Virginia on foot for the 
purpose of bringing his family to the new 
home in the wilds of Kosciusko county. 
Loading his few l>eIongings on a wag 
Mr. Johnson and his family started on the 

lay of October. 1834, for their future 
home, which, after a long and toilsome 
journey, in the face of many obstacles, they 
reached on the T-t day of November of 
that year, and immediately thereafter began 
making preparation- for permanent settle- 



Lmilj -pent the following win- 
ter in a little cabin that had been previously 
by a temporary settler and in March. 
[835. Mr. Johnson erected a log house of 
- >wn on one hundred and sixty acre- of 
land in section 9 of congressional township 
33, but in what is now known as the civil 
township of Tippecanoe. By hard and al- 
unremitting toil he succeeded that 
spring in putting out five acre- of corn and 
vegetables, which the following summer 
and fall yielded an abundant crop. Isaac 
a lad of eleven years at the time and 
did his full share in helping clear the land 
ami tending the crop during the summer 
season. Before the summer was half gone 
the entire family was taken with the ague, 
a disease then prevalent throughout Indi- 
ana. With no physician nearer than fifteen 
or twenty miles and no neighbor to min- 
ister to their wants or alleviate their suffer- 
ings, their condition was distressing in the 
extreme. During the first spring- and -11111- 
mer they saw but two white women and the 
nearest neighbors, who lived several miles 
away, were so afflicted with the prevailing 
sickness as to be unable to render any assist- 
ance whatever. But all evils must end. - 
or late, and so it proved in the case of Mr. 
Johnson and his family. After suffering 
untold misery for several months the ague 
was finally broken and by fall all were able 
to be up and about their several duties. 
During the winter of 1835 Mr. Jol 
with the help of his sons, succeeded in clear- 
ing alxutt ten acres of land, which with 
what had already been fitted for cultivation 
made quite a respectable start in a country 
-o new and undeveloped. From that time 
on better times prevailed and the pioneer 
family feasted well -upon such article- of 



4So 



COMPE.XDICM OF BIOGRAPHY 



diet as corn bread, potatoes, ]x>rk and wild 
game, the latter plentiful and easily pi 
cured. At Syracuse was a small mill, or 
more properly a com cracker, which made 

•ar-e article of meal, and to it Mr. John- 
orted for what breadstuffs the fam- 
ily needed. To narrate in detail the trying 
experiences and hardships which the John- 

- encountered in getting established in 
their new home on Turkey creek would far 
transcend the limits of a sketch of this kind. 
Suffice it to say that by hard toil, cl< 

nomy and great industry upon the part 
of all thev gradually surmounted their un- 
favorable environment and in the course 
a few year- found then situated with 

a g 1 farm and a sufficiency of this world's 

ids to place them among the more sub- 
stantial class ..[' people of the community. 

[Benjamin Johnson was a typical repre- 
sentative of the sterling yeomanry of the 
period, strong of limb, firm of purpose and 
■nan whom all his friends and neighbors 
respected. He possessed intelligence be- 
yond that of the a -ettler and t 

an active interest in the early affair- of the 
county, serving on the first election l«>ard 
which -at in Lee-burg and figuring con- 
spicuously in the county organization. 

He wa- a member of the tir-t grand 
jury ever impanelled in the county of k 
ciusko, and ranked among the first scl 

the county, lie v the 

township's tir-t y. ■ the peace, in 

which ]H>sition he served two terms, and in 
various other official capacities he rendered 
his fellow citizens efficient service during 
the formative period of the country. 
The Johnson family has long been n 

•y. a number of the subject's an- 



- having reached advanci and 
to this rule Benjamin was no exception. 

He lived a long and useful life, did a 

- amount of hard labor, assumed 
many trying responsibilities and reached the 

Id age of ninety-four year- before 
called to the other life. His influence upon 
the early history and development of Tip- 
pecanoe township was potential ami far- 
reaching in effect and as a man and citi- 
zen he will always be remembered a- one 
of the representative pioneer- of the county. 
Isaac Johnson was l>orn in West Vir- 
ginia on the i Nth day of February, 1824. 
He spent ten years of his life amid tl • 
miliar scenes of his birthplace and then ac- 
companied his parents t" Kosciusko, where 
his early experience- were such a- have 
briefly outlined in preceding paragraphs. 
Before leaving his native state he attended 
two terms of school and after comil 
Indiana he attended the school- which his 
father taught, thereby obtaining a sufficient 
knowledge of books to serve nida- 

tion for hi- subsequent career a- a -1: 
ful and progressive farmer. From boy- 

h 1 he knew by practical experience the 

meaning of hard and hoi and until 

hi- twenty-first year he remained at home 
ting his father in clearing land and 
otherwise running the farm. < >n attaining 
hi- majority he rented the home place and 
farmed it thereafter for about thi 
meeting with fair success in his work, hu- 
ll with a de-ire to have land of his 
own. Mr. Johnson, when about twenty-three 
or twenty-four years old. went to the land 
officer at Fort Wayne and entered forty- 
six acres. al«>ut all the government land 
that was then untaken in the towns! 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



481 



Tippecanoe. He had money sufficient to 
pay the entry fee. but was obliged to bor- 
row fwe dollars to complete his payments 
on the land. The spring and summer fol- 
lowing his purchase he cleared five acres. 
which were sown in wheat that fall, and 
before the expiration of the first year he 
had paid back the money borrowed and re- 
ceived a deed for his place. 

Mr. Johnson knew what hard work 
meant and he gave himself little rest until 
lie had his farm cleared and in a good state 
of cultivation. On Xew Year's day. 1N50. 
he was united in marriage to Miss Jane 
Mock, daughter of Michael Mock, who 
came to Kosciusko county from Ohio some- 
time in the 'forties and settled in Tippe- 
canoe township. Mr. Johnson prepared a 
neat log cabin of one room for the recej>- 
tion of his bride, .and. with a bed given him 
1>\ his mother, a box for a table, smaller 
boxes for chairs, a couple of pots, the same 
number of skillets, a few very cheap dishes, 
and some simple articles of tinware, the 
young couple began housekeeping very con- 
tentedly, if not in abluent circumstances. 
Subsequently he added two chairs to his 
stock of furniture, ami, having good credit 
at a store in Leesburg, purchased other 
articles from time to time, until the little 
loo- cabin was fairly well supplied with 
household effects. Mr. and Mrs. Johnson 
spent some of the happiest days of theii 
lives in this simple and humble manner, 
and now. after the lapse of over half a 
century, he looks back to the time in the 
nile cabin home with a thrill of pleasure 
such as never experienced when surroundi I 
with more and much greater comforts and 
conveniences. 



Mr. Johnson continued to purchase 
goods from the merchant at Leesburg 
credit until his bill amounted to about fifty 
dollars, a very formidable sum at that time, 
especially to a young man who had 110 vis- 
ible means of raising the money. When 
asked to settle he was in a most embarrass- 
ing predicament indeed, having no ready 
cash, nor did he know how to obtain it. 
While devising means to extricate himself 
from the dilemma, a happy thought came 
into his mind. At that time rat skins were 
selling for fifteen cents each and there was 
a great demand for them by fur dealers who 
had local agents in many parts of northern 
Indiana. His place being overrun with 
these rodents, Mr. Johnson procured a num- 
ber of traps and such was his success in 
capturing the little animals that within two 
weeks he sold enough skins to cancel his 
debt, besides having a considerable surplus 
in his pocket. 

Mr. Johnson states thai his first farm- 
ing implements were in keeping with his 
household furniture, few and of the most 
primitive pattern. He broke his ground 
with a wooden mold-board, used a harrow 
witli wooden teeth, cut his grain with a 
hand sickle and a cradle, and did' his other 
work in an equally slow and laborious way. 
In due time, however, a new and better era 
was ushered in and it was not many years 
until the log cabin gave place to a new and 
much more commodious and comfortable 
structure of frame, the simple household 
effects were replaced with modern conven- 
iences, until the farm labor was performed 
by tin- newest and most approved imple- 
ments and agricultural devices, lie 
added to his land until his farm contained 



482 



MPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



I and nine acres, which for fer- 
tility and general agricultural purposes is 
no! ! hy an) place of it- -ize within 

the limits ■ i the township. 

Mr. Johnson has been an up-to-date 
farmer, exceedingly methodical in the pros- 
ecution of his labors, and he seldom fails 
to gather abundant harvests from his well- 
tilled fields. He has also devoted consider- 
able attention t" his horses, cattle and hogs, 
in fact, prosperity has all along attended 
him and he can now say that he owes no 
man, besides having ample mean- to make 
the remainder of his life comfortable. He 

always been an optimist and l>y looking 
upon the sunny -ide of every cioud has not 
onlj made himself happy and contented, but 
rendered life plea-ant to those about him. 

Mr. Johnson is characterized by a pleas- 
ing personal presence, amiable disposition 
and an agreeable manner that wins and re- 
arm friendships. Held in the hig 

es eem by the people of his community, 
he is also well known throughout the county 
by reason of his long continued residence, 
and wherever he goes he is assured of 
warm greetings b) those t" whom his name 
has been a familiar sound ever since their 

childh 1: During the sixty-seven years 

that have dissolved with the mists of the 
past since he came to Tippecanoe township 
he has seen many wonderful changes, not 
only in the county, hut in the people a- well. 
All of those who were here upon his ar- 
rival have either died or moved elsewhere, 
and others have taken their places, in turn 
I. he succeeded by still newer comer- until 
a new and entirely different generation now 
possess the land. Contemplating the p 
Holmes' very beautiful and expressive lines 



may be appropriately quoted in this 
nection : 

• 

( »n tin- lips that In- has pre--- 

In their bloom, 
And the n mi' i'-ar 

Haw been < arved t"r ma 

On the- tomb. 

Mr. and Mr-. Johnson have two chil- 
dren, Dulcina, wife of Philip Amol< 
Tippecanoe town-hip. and Benjamin F.; 
the latter married Mi— Anna Gans, of this 
county, and died some years ago. Mr. John- 
son was made a Mason at N'orth Webster 
in the year 1866, and ha- served his 

arious official capacities from worship- 
ful master down. A- worshipful master lie 
served for twenty consecutive years, a fact 
which speaks eloquently of hi- abilitj 
presiding officer a- well a- for hi- standing 
a- a bright and well-posted member of the 
Mystic lie. Religiously he i- a Methodist, 
to which denomination hi- good wife 

i member for a number of year- before 
she died. Her death occurred August is. 
1895. In politics Mr. Johnson is a Repub- 
lican, enthusiastic in upholding his prin- 
ciple- and fearless in the expression of his 
opinion-. He ha- served a- different times 
tad supervisor and did much to intro- 
duce and improve the excellent system ol 
public highways for which Tippecanoe 
township has long been noted. 

In the foregoing line- have been briefly 
-et forth the leading tact- in the life his- 
tory of one of Kosciusko county's oldest 
citizens and most worthy men. Honest, 
fearless in behalf of the right, and true to 
duty devolving upon him. he haa 
lived long and well and his name wil 
tine to be honored by the people of a coin- 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



483 



ir.unitv for the advancement of which he 
devoted many of his best years and en- 
sreies. 



HEXRV WILLIS. 



Admired ami respected for his general 
intelligence and culture, as well as fur his 
sterling qualities as a neighbor and a citi- 
zen, no man in the town of North Webs- 
:er stands higher in public esteem than the 
.vorthv individual the salient facts of whose 
ife and characteristics are herein set forth. 

Henry Willis is an American by adop- 
ion. but none the less a loyal citizen of this 
*reat republic and an ardent admirer of its 
:ree institutions. He was born August 30, 
[833, in England, where his ancestors for 
nanv generations have lived. His father, 
lames Willis, married a Miss Andrews, 
vho died in her native county in 1838, and 
ibout three years later the father married 
1 Miss Proctor. In [842 they left their 
lative land and went to Prince Edward's 
.sland. in the dominion of Canada, wdiere 
hey spent the remainder of their lives. 

Henry Willis was a lad of nine years 
vhen he looked for the last time upon the 
: amiliar scenes of his beautiful native land, 
ind from that time until his twentieth year 
le lived with his parents in Prince Edward's 
island. After attending school until about 
if teen years of age he began, in 1854, to 
earn the miller's trade and after becoming 
>r< (ficient in the same left Prince Edward's 
sland in 1857 and went to Kankakee, Illi- 
lois, where he soon found remunerative em- 
ployment in a large flouring-mill. After re- 
naming in that city until 1859 Mr. Willis 
"eturned to Prince Edward's Island and 



married Miss Elizabeth McDonald, the 
ceremony being- duly solemnized July 7th 
of that \ear. Mrs. Willis is of Scotch-Eng- 
lish descent 'and inherits many of the ami- 
able and sterling qualities of those two 
sturdy races. She is a native of Prince Ed- 
ward's Island, born in the year 1834, her 
people being among the early settlers of 
that little country. After his marriage Mr. 
Willis returned with his bride to Kankakee, 
where he continued as a manufacturer of 
Hour until 1869. Subsequently he moved 
to Wisconsin and was employed as a miller 
in that state until 1885, at which time he 
purchased the mill at North Webster, which 
he continued to operate with successful 
financial results until 1892, when he aban- 
doned the manufacture of flour and retired 
to the beautiful little farm near the town 
where he is now living a life of honorable 
retirement. He sold the mill in 1893 to the 
Kline Brothers, after spending thirty-eight 
years in preparing the most important 
article of diet known to humanity. 

Mr. and Mrs. Willis have been blessed 
with seven children, the oldest of whom, 
Alice, is deceased. Elizabeth J., the second 
born, married Frank Smith and lives in 
Colorado: William H., who married Min- 
nie Smith, lives in Wisconsin; Aha May, 
now Mrs. Henry T. Kline, resides in North 
Webster: Arthur E. S., whose home is in 
Wisconsin, married Edna Sanger: Alice 
M.. who is unmarried, was educated in the 
Northwestern Lniversity of Evanston, Illi- 
nois, and has achieved considerable distinc- 
tion as teacher of elocution and physical 
culture: the youngest member of the family 
is Albert II.. the efficient and popular clerk 
in the large general store at North Webster 
owned by V. M. Mock. Mr. Willis gave 



484 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



his children excellent educational advan- 
tages and they are all noted for culture and 
refinement, as well as for broad general in- 
telligence. They made the best of the op- 
• portunities afforded them and are now oc- 
cupying positions of honor and usefulness 
in society. 

Mr. Willis has always been a friend of 
education and has done much to promote its 
interests in the community where he now 
lives and elsewhere. He is a gentleman of 
broad culture, having read much of the 
world'-- besl literature, while hi> acquaint- 
ance with history, politics, economics and 
the leading questions and issues, both at 
home and abroad, is by no mean- super- 
ficial. He i- a deep thinker, a close ob- 
server and has well defined opinions and 
the courage of his convictions. I "mil [896 
he voted with the Democracy, hut becom- 
ing dissatisfied with the party's policy on 
the financial question he repudiated the free 
silver idea a- a specious and dangerous fal- 
lacy, detrimental to the business interests 
of the country, and that year casl his ballot 
for the opposition. Since then he has 
warmly supported the Republican party and 
i- now one of its most earnest adherent-. 
On matters religious Mr. Willis has read 
much and thought deeply. Recognizing the 
validity of the church's claim- great 

mora! and spiritual force, and supporting 
it with hi- influence and mean-, he ha- never 
identified himself with any ecclesiastical 
ganization, believing that religion i- largely 
a matter of conscience and that creed- and 
formulated systems of theology in a great 
measure defeat the purposes for which in- 
led. Enthused with considerable local 
pride, he has given hi- -auction and aid to 
the advancement of the community materi- 



ally, educationally and morally, and his in- 
fluence at all times potent has always 
exerted upon the right -ide of every great 
question. Mr. Willis has led a very active 
life and has discharged to the best of his 
ability every duty that has devolved upon 
him as a member in the body politic. Hav- 
ing no aspirations beyond succeeding well 
in his business affairs and preparing his 
children for the responsibilities which in 
due time would come to them as independ- 
ent factor- in the world, he ha- done well 
hi- part and is fully entitled to the quiet 
and seclusion of the retired life, which he 
purposes to live from now until the end of 
his earthly pilgrimage. 

Mr. and Mrs. Willis are valued members 
of society and their hospitable home is a 
favorite rendezvous for the best social cir- 
cle- of the town and surrounding country. 
They are highly esteemed by their many 
neighbors and friend-, and possess the un- 
limited confidence of all who have the pleas- 
ure of their acquaintance. Mrs. Willis is 
an active member of the Methodist church, 
zealous in good work- ami popular in the 
local congregation which meet- for worship 
in North Webster. 



WILLI \M BANNING 

The worthy gentleman to a review of 
whose life the reader'- attention is here- 
with invited is one of the well known and 
highly esteemed citizen- of Tippecanoe 
township and a gallant survivor of one of 
the greatesl civil wars in the world's his- 
tory, lie 1- a -telling son of the soil, a 
• '-made man in all the term implies, and 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



485 



as one of the brave boys that donned the 
blue when the safety of our government 
was threatened by the armed hosts of 
treason is entitled to the respect and grati- 
tude of every true and loyal American 
citizen. 

William Banning is an Ohio man, born 
in Delaware county, that state, on the 21st 
day of July. 1835. His father was Jeffer- 
son Banning, a native of the state of Dela- 
ware and of German descent. When a 
young man Jefferson Banning went- to Ohio, 
where he grew to manhood as a tiller of 
the soil. He married, in Delaware coun- 
ty, Ohio, Miss Martha Sellers, whose peo- 
ple were early settlers of Ohio, and became 
the father of eight children, namely : Will- 
iam, Wilson, Williard, Lester, Mary E., Re- 
becca, Elizabeth and Millie. When the 
subject of this review was about twelve 
years old his father moved to Whitley coun- 
ty, Indiana, where he followed agricultural 
pursuits for some time on land leased for 
the purpose and later purchased a small 
farm which he improved and upon which 
he and his good wife spent the remainder of 
their days. He was an honest, industrious 
man, well known in the community where 
he lived and highly respected by all who 
knew him for his many sterling qualities 
and manly living. He did not leave to his 
descendants a very large amount of worldly 
wealth, but that which is of far greater 
value, a spotless reputation which they prize 
as a priceless heritage. 

It was William Banning's good fortune 
to he reared by excellent parents amid the 
quiet and peaceful scenes of healthful out- 
door life 1 m the farm. He was early taught 
habits 1 if industry and thrift and in the com- 
mon schools, which he attended at intervals 



during his minority, he received a fair 
knowledge of such branches as were then 
taught. He remained at home, assisting 
with the labor of the farm, until attaining 
his majority, when he engaged in the pur- 
suit of agriculture upon his own responsi- 
bility, continuing the same until August, 
1864. He then enlisted for three years or 
during the war, joining Company G, One 
Hundred and Forty-second Indiana Volun- 
teer Infantry. Immediately after his enlist- 
ment Mr. Banning was sent to the front, 
reaching Nashville, Tennessee, in time to 
participate in the last bloody battle fought 
just outside the city, in which the Confed- 
erate forces under General Hood were de- 
feated and their power broken. He served 
until the close of the war, but by reason of 
sickness did not take a very active part in 
movements against the enemy during the 
last few months. For several years after 
his discharge he suffered considerably from 
the effects of the disease contracted while 
in the service — in fact he has never entirely 
recovered, and at the present time is secur- 
ing from a grateful government a pension 
of twelve dollars per month. 

Returning to Whitley county after leav- 
ing the army, Mr. Banning and his brother, 
also a veteran of the Civil war, settled on 
a small farm which they had previously 
purchased near Larwell. Here they resided 
and jointly cleared and otherwise improved 
it and continued to cultivate it in partner- 
ship until about 1871, when his brother 
sold out and went west, and about one year 
later, in 1872, William purchased the farm 
where he now lives. He has operated the 
place with success and profit, becoming one 
of the enterprising and substantial farmers 
of his neighborh 1. a- well as one of the 



486 



MPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



substantial and enterprising citizens of the 
township of Tippecanoe. 

Mr. Banning's farm is not as larg< 
e belonging to his neighbors, never- 
theless he has brought it to a high state of 
tillage and by industry and successful inan- 

ement realizes as much from his acres 
many do from places of much larger area. 
His improvements are all first class and the 
care and >kill with which he prosecutes 
labors show him to be well versed in agri- 
cultural science, with the ability to reduce 
the same to the largest practical account. 
As previously stated, he is a -elf-made man. 
as he began life's struggle with no aid what- 
ever except such as his good strong arms, 
hacked by a well defined purpose, afforded 
him. Starting at the very foot of the lad- 
der, lie ha- gradually ascended until In 
now in very comfortable circumstances, hav- 
ing accumulated a competency of sufficient 
magnitude to make the remainder of his 

day- free from care or anxiety. A- ;i citi- 
zen his reputation is unimpeachable and 
a neighbor and friend he is widel) respected, 
iv me in the county standing higher in pub- 
lic esteem. 

.Mr. Banning i- a married man and the 
father of three children, the oldest of whom 
i- William. who still makes the parental 
farm his home. Arthur, the second in or- 
der of birth, married Mi-- Nora Needier 
and i- a prosperous farmer of Tippecanoe 
township. Joseph, the youngest, is de- 
ceased. The mother of these children was 
formerly Mr-. Virginia Phares, widow of 
the late Riley 1 'hares and daughter of 
seph and Martha (Dunn) Light. Mr. Ban- 
ning i- a Republican in politics, hut i- not 
an active worker during campaigns, a- his 
health will n>> longer permit and his 



and inclinations have never led him in the 
direction of office seeking. lie served as 

supervisor of his township, hut ha- never 
held nor desired any other official station. 
preferring the quiet life of the farm and the 
sphere of the private citizen to any honors 
which the ballots of his fellow men can con- 
fer upon him. 

Wherever Mr. Banning i- known his 
word l- a- good as his bond, and his repu- 
tation for truth and veracity ha- never been 
impeached. It is such men as lie that s, r ive 
stability and character to a community and 
although their names may not adorn the 
of history nor their <\vt;<\- cause them 
t" he numbered among the distinguish* 
renowned in the true sense of the word. 
they are .yreat because humble, for great- 
ness consists largely of humility. An earn- 
est heliever in the religion of the Bible, he 

- lone much to advance the cauJ 
Christianity in the community, heir. 
humble and devout, hut at the -ame time 
an aggressive member, of the Evangelical 
church of North Webster, to which body 
hi- w ife also bel< »ngs. 



CHARLES K. HARLAN. 

This well-known citizen and prospei 
farmer of Van Ihiren township was born in 
■inty. Indiana, June 25, [863, 
site of hi- birthplace being about one 
and a half mile- we-t of the village of l.ee- 
burg. Hi- father was William Harlan, a 
native of Ohio, who was brought to Kosci- 
usko county when a lad live years old. The 
father of William entered one hundred and 
sixty acre- of land west of Leesburg in an 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



487 



carl\' day and was one of the pioneer set- 
tlers of Van Buren township. The subject's 
father was reared on this place and when 
old enough to begin life for himself en- 
gaged in agricultural pursuits, which he car- 
ried on in connection with stuck raising as 
lung as he lived. He was a self-made man. 
having" been left without a father's care 
when twelve years old, and from that early 
age he was compelled to rely entirely upon 
1 is own resources for support. He accum- 
ulated a handsome property, provided well 
for his family and at his death left a tine 
farm and other valuable property, aill of 
which was the result of his own labor and 
economy. 

William Harlan was twice married, the 
first time to Miss Eliza Bogges, who be- 
came the mother of four children: E. J., 
Marv A., George and Sophronia. The sec- 
ond wife was Caroline Raker, a native of 
Germany, who came with her brother and 
sister to the United States at the age of 
eighteen years, the family settling in the 
county of Kosciusko; she was one of six 
children, Henry. Ludwig, Court H.. Will- 
iam, Sophia and Caroline. Caroline Har- 
lan bore her husband four children, name- 
ly: Charles, whose name introduces this 
biography; Lizzie, wife of Manuel Dubbs : 
Mattie, who married J. W. Robinson: and 
llattie. now Mrs. \V. 1). Groves. The 
mother was born on the 3d day of Novem- 
ber. [838, and is still living. William Har- 
lan's birth occurred on the 30th of April, 
iS_»<). and he departed this life August 17, 
[897. lie was an excellent citizen, a zeal- 
ous member of the Christian church and a 
-nmed Republican in politics. He en- 
joyed the confidence and esteem of the peo- 



ple of bis township to a marked degree and 
will long be remembered as .me of the hon- 
orable, upright and enterprising men of the 
community in which all but five years of his 
life were spent. 

Charles E. Harlan attended the coun- 
try schools during his childhood and youth 
and spent his early years in an uneventful 
manner on the home farm. He learned les- 
sons of practical industry while assisting 
to cultivate the place and remained under 
the parental roof until 1890. on March 29th 
of which year he was united in wedlock to 
Miss Emma A. Goshorn, daughter of 
George and Margaret ( Whitmer) Goshorn, 
both parents natives of Pennsylvania. Mrs. 
Harlan's father came to Kosciusko county 
in an early day and spent the remainder of 
his life here as a tiller of the soil. Imme- 
diately following his marriage Mr. Harlan 
settled on the place in Van Buren township. 
south of Milford. where he has since lived 
and prospered. He owns a fine farm of 
eighty-two acres, all in cultivation, and has 
made many substantial impri ivements. as is 
indicated by the attractive appearance of his 
home and its surroundings. He is a model 
farmer in that he prosecutes his labors ac- 
cording to system, and carefully studies the 
soil and its adaptability to the different 
products raised. He employs modern 
methods, uses improved implements and 
machinery and seldom fails to realize abun- 
dant returns from his crops and from the 
sale of the fine live stock which he raises. 
Mr. Harlan pays considerable attention to 
cattle of the Improved Jersej breed, of 
which he usually keeps quite a number and 
also markets every year a greal many Po- 
land China and Berkshire hogs, a business 



48S 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



which he has made very profitable in con- 
nection with his general work as an agri- 
culturist. 

Mr. Harlan i- a g 1 man and exer. 

uties of citizenship as becomes a true 
and loyal American. He attends strictly to 
his own affair-, is prompt in meeting all of 
his business engagements and wherever 

known his word is as g 1 as his note. A 

man of unimpeachable integrity and high 
sense of honor and justice, his influence has 
always been potent for good and as a neigh- 
bor and friend no one stands higher in the 
esteem of the people of Van Buren town- 
ship. He voted the Republican ticket, but 
has never asked for office at the hands of 
his fellow citizens, having no inclination in 
that direction. Religiously he is an ad- 
herent of the Christian church, as is his 
w i fe. 

The Following are the names and dates 
of birth of the three children horn to Mr. 
and Mrs. Harlan: Vera 1... March 24, 
[892; Fred L., March 20, [895; and Ethel 

lien. ( Ictober 26, 191 



DANIEL T< ).M. 



The career of the well-known and hij 
[j respected gentleman whose name heads 
this review illustrates forcibly the possi- 
bilities that are open to men of earnest pur- 
pose, integritj and sterling business qual- 
ifications. A well-spent life and an honor- 
able career constitute his record and now, 
after long years of honest toil, he is enjoy- 
ing the fruits of his labors in honorable re- 
tirement, living in a beautiful home in the 
outskirts of Milford, esteemed by a host of 



friends in the town and throughout the 
county. 

John Tom, father of the subject, was 
born in Pennsylvania in [816 and when 
young accompanied his parents to Stark 
county. Ohio, where he lived about fifteen 
\ears. He then moved to Kosciusko coun- 
ty. Indiana, and settled in Van Buren town- 
ship, where he purchased and improved an 
eighty-acre farm, becoming in the course of 
a few years a very successful agriculturist. 
He added to his real estate from time to 
time until he owned lands amounting to 
about four hundred acres, nearly all of 
which was improved and became verj val- 
uable. In addition to general farm work- 
lie raised considerable live Stock and all ol 

his business transactions appear to have re- 
dounded greatly to his financial advantage. 

John Tom's wife was Elizabeth llipsch; 

she became the mother of six children, jf 
whom Daniel is the first born. The others 
are Mary, who married Daniel Mine, a 
fanner of this county; George married Lu- 
anda Nine and is also engaged in agricult- 
ural pursuits; Harriet, wife of Enoch 
Hoover, lives on a farm in the township of 
Van Buren; Hamen died at the age of four- 
teen years and I.avina also departed this 
life in childhood. Mr. Tom was a leading 
member of the German Baptist (or Dunk- 
anli church and in ]>olitics supported the 
principles of the Democratic party. His 
wife w 1 communicant of the Her- 

man I la] >t 1st church and a woman of Sterling 
qualities of head and heart. She and her 
husband were both of Herman lineage and 
long as they lived were noted for their 
uprighl lives and for the good work they 
did in behalf of religion, benevolence and 
charity. 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



489 



Daniel Turn, the subject proper of this 
sketch, was born in Stark county, Ohio, in 
the year 1827. His childhood and youthful 
years sped away on the farm, and in the 
old-fashioned schools common to the period 
lie received his first instruction in the mys- 
teries of book lore. He earl) became ac- 
customed to the varied duties of agriculture 
and remained with his father until the age 
of l \\ent_\ -line, assisting to clear and culti- 
vate the farm, meantime laying broad and 
deep a solid foundation for his subsequent 
career as one of Kosciusko county's progres- 
sive husbandmen and useful citizens. 

On attaining his majority Mr. Tom left 
home and for about four years thereafter 
worked by the month as a farm hand, care- 
fully saving his earnings and perfecting his 
plans for the future. At the age of about 
twenty-five he chose a companion and help- 
meet on life's journey, being happily mar- 
ried on the 3d day of August, 1854, to Miss 
Rachael Nine, daughter of Jonathan and 
Catherine (Crowd) Nine. Purchasing a 
farm of one hundred and twenty acres about 
five miles south of Milford, he moved his 
bride thereto and began life's struggle un- 
der very favorable auspices, meeting with 
encouraging success from the beginning and 
establishing a reputation as a systematic and 
enterprising farmer and stock raiser. Mr. 
Tom made judicious investments in real 
estate as opportunities afforded, adding to 
his land at intervals until he became the pos- 
sessor of a valuable tract containing three 
hundred eighty and a half acres, all of 
which came to him as the well-timed re- 
sults of his own labor and management. 
I lis estate now numbers two hundred sixty 
and a half acres, the other having been di- 
vided among bis children, whom he assisted 



in many ways aside from the land deeded 
them. In his various affairs he has dis- 
played excellent judgment and discrimina- 
tion, all of his transactions having been con- 
ducted with due regard to the ethics of 
business, the result being a reputation for 
sterling honesty of which he and his many 
friends fully appreciate. 

Mr. Tom is a broad-minded, progres- 
sive man, ever active in promoting the gen- 
eral welfare, liberal in the expenditure of 
bis means to advance the cause of religion 
and morality and a strong advocate of law 
and order in all the terms imply. He has 
given his time and attention entirely to 
farming and stock raising and the neat and 
thrifty appearance of his place, its improve- 
ments and high state of cultivation, indi- 
cate the careful supervision and close ap- 
plication with which he has attended to his 
duties. Recently he purchased a beautiful 
plat of fifteen acres adjoining the town of 
Milford, on which is a neat and attractive 
home, surrounded by shade and fruit trees, 
well-tended gardens and fine lawns, where 
he purposes to spend the remainder of his 
life in the enjoyment of the rest and quiet- 
ude which he has so well earned. 

Personally Mr. Tom is held in high es- 
teem by a large circle of friends and ac- 
quaintances and there is no more popular 
man in the town and township of his resi- 
dence. He has well and faithfully dis- 
charged the duties of citizenship, is a close 
observer of current events that shape the 
history of the nation and since old enough 
to wield the elective franchise has been a 
pronounced supporter of the Democratic 
party. While interested in the success of 
his party's nominees, he does not take a 
very active part in political affairs, though 






COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



ready at all times to give a reason for his 
views and maintain their soundness. He 
has never been ambitious to hold office, but 
at the earnest solicitation of his friends 
some years ago he was elected trustee of 
Van I '.men township and proved a capable 
and popular official; he also served as road 
supervisor and as such was nntiriny in his 
efforts t'> improve the highways within his 
jurisdiction. 

Mr. Tom is a member of the Progressive 
branch of the German Baptist church and a 
pillar of the congregation worshipping in 
Milford; his family are also identified with 
the same religious body, all of them being 
esteemed members and active workers. Mr. 
and Mis. Tom have had lour children: 
[Catherine M.. horn September 25, 1855, i> 
the wife of John Bartholomew ami the 
mother of one son and one daughter, Hat- 
tie and Franklin; John F. was born on the 
27th of May, 1857; he married Kate Price, 
ha- one son, Earl, and carries on farming 
in the township of Van Buren; Mary E., 
whose birth occurred on the 28th of May. 
1859, died December ,}. [861 ; lame- 1 . 
born March [6, [868, i- a prosrx 
farmer of Van Buren township; he married 
Delia Bearinger ami ha- a famih of four 
children. 

Mr-. Tom's parents, Jonathan and 
[Catherine Nine, moved to Kosciusko coun- 
t\ in an early day from ( )hio and settled on 
a quarter section of land in the southern 
part of Van Buren township, which Mr. 
Nine purchased from the government at 
one an. I a quarter dollars per acre. They 
lived for some years in a little log cabin 
and experienced the usual hardships and 
difficulties that fell to the lot of the pioneer-. 
Mr. Nine cleared a g 1 farm and became 



one of the leading agriculturists a- well as 
one of tiie substantial citizen- of this com- 
munity. He reared a family of ten chil- 
dren, several of whom still live in Van 
Buren town-hip, and died a number of years 
ago at the ripe old age of eighty-six years; 
hi- wife also lived to Ik- quite old, dying at 
the age of eight\ eight years, six months 
and two days, and now rests beside her hus- 
band in the quiet palace of the dead whose 
door- do not outward -w ing. 



I \i oil I. I R( IUP. 



Agriculture has been an honored voca- 
tion from the earliest ages and a- a usual 
thing men of honorable and humane im- 
. a- well as those of energy and thrift, 
have been patron- of husbandry. The free 
outdoor life of the farm has a decided ten- 
dency to foster and develop that independ- 
ence of mind ami self-reliance which char- 
acterize true manhood and no greater I 

an befall a boy than to be reared in 
dose touch with nature in the healthful, life- 
inspiring labor of the fields. It has always 
been the fruitful soil from which have 
sprung the moral bone and sinew of the 
country, ami the majority of our nation's 
great warrior.-, wi-e -tale-men, renowned 
scholars and distinguished men of letters 
were bom on the farm and are indebted to 
rly influence for the distinction which 
they have attained. 

Among the substantial tiller- of the 
in Kosciusko county. Indiana, is the enter- 
prising gentleman under the caption of 
whose name this article is written. Jacob 
|. [Youp i- a native of Kosciusko county, 
having Urn born in the township of Van 
Buren, October -■-'. 1856. Hi- paternal 




JACOB TROUP RESIDENCE 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



491 



grandfather. Benjamin Troup, was a native 

of Pennsylvania, but left that state in early 
manhood, going to Canada and settling near 
Fort Erie, in the county of Wellington, 
where, in i8jo, his sun John 1'.. was born. 
John 1!. Troup was reared near, his birth- 
place and there married Elizabeth Shirk-, 
who bore him nine children: Mary A., 
Peter, Elizabeth, Benjamin, Betsey, fudea, 
Jacob J.. Wilson and William II. After 
living in Canada until forty-live years of 
age John 11. Troup moved to Elkhart county, 
Indiana, settling near the village of New 
Paris. After a short residence there he 
changed his abode to Van Buren township, 
Kosciusko county, where he engaged in ag- 
ricultural pursuits, a vocation which he fol- 
lowed throughout the remainder of his life. 
He subsequent! v returned to Union town- 
ship, Elkhart county, and thence to Mar- 
shall county. In connection with farming 
Mr. Troup worked at the carpenter's trade 
and for many years was accounted a skill- 
ful mechanic. I Ie was also noted as a hunts- 
man in earl\- life, having spent considerabli 
time in the woods and killed much game 
both in sport and as a means of varying 
the family's hill of fare. As a man he was 
highly esteemed and for a number of years 
was an active and zealous member of the 
( lerman Baptist church. 

Jacob Troii]i spent his early life in Union 
township and during his minority attended 
the country schools of winter seasons, de- 
voting the rest of the time to the rugged 
duties of the farm. He became familiar 
with all kinds of manual labor required ol 
country hoys and remained at home until 
the age of twenty-one, meantime hearing 
his share of the family's support. November 
io, [880, he was united in marriage to Ali-s 

30 



Zona Funk, daughter of George and Maria 
(Sparkling) Funk, after which he settled 
on a farm west of Milforti and cultivated the 
same about one year, moving to his present 
home at the expiration of that time. 

Air. Troup owns a farm of two hundred 
acres, which, in point of fertility, general 
productiveness, improvements and all that 
constitute a prosperous country home, is not 
excelled by any other of its size in the coun- 
tv of Kosciusko, lie cleared about twenty- 
live acres of land himself ami by systematic 
work and successful management has 
brought the entire place to the high state of 
cultivation for which it litis long been noted. 
He is a man of progressive ideas in all that 
pertains to agricultural science, a reader of 
the best literature relating to farming and 
possesses the ability to reduce all worthy 
theories to practical tests. In connection 
with tilling of the soil he is largely inter- 
ested in live stock, giving special attention 
to blooded shorthorn cattle and Chester 
White and Poland China hogs, in the rais- 
ing and selling of which he has been remark- 
abl) successful. 

As a business man Mr. Troup possesses 
good judgment and clear insight, and can 
generally anticipate with accuracy the end 
of a transaction. ||is relations, business or 
otherwise, with his fellow men have always 
been characterized by the utmost candor 
and his integrity is of that kind which wins 
confidence and is never questioned. There 
are no belter citizens than Air. Troup, is 
he always manifests a lively interest in the 
uiilrx and it-, welfare and is public spirited 
io the extent of using all legitimate means 
within lii- power to promote enterprises 
whereby the people of his township and 
county may be benefited. In religion he 



492 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



subscribes to the doctrines of the Progres- 
sive branch of the German Baptist (or Dun- 
kard) church, being one of the leading 
members of that large and influential body 
in the t< i\\ u^lii|i of Van Buren, liis wife also 
belonging i" the same- society. Politically 
Mr. froup i- a Democrat, but has never as 
pired to public office. 

Mr. and Mrs. Troup have had six chil- 
dren, ;\\" "i whom are deceased; Irwin J., 
born August 31, 1881, married Mrs. Alma 
< >ster and is a farmer "i Van Buren town- 
ship; James P. was born on the 29th of 
April, [882; Lillie M.. November i_\ 1883; 
Kittie V., whose liirth occurred May 30, 
1889, died on the 10th day of April, 
Zola M. and Zora I", were twins, hut the 
former is deceased. 

Mrs. Troup's parents were natives 
Ohio, but bj reason of their dying when 
she was quite young her knowledge of the 
family is considerably limited. The names 
of her brothers and sisters, as she remem- 
bers them, are as follows: Alice. G< 
Effie, William. Darcuse and Peter. At the 
if si\ years Mrs. Troup was left an 
orphan and from that time until her mar- 
riage she lived in the family of her hus- 
band's uncle. In return for his kindiu 
raising her and ministering to her wants 
when an orphan, she t""k her benefactor to 
\n home in his latter days and tenderly 
cared for him until his death, which oc- 
curred August [3, 1 'if". 



I Wll-S PLUMMER. 

The gentleman whose name heads this 
sketch has long enjoyed 1 ts a lead 

n of the community in which he 



resides, and as an official against v 
ord no word of suspicion was ever uttered 
he wa> for many years an important 
in the history of Kosciusko county. Ri 
amidst the wild I pioneer life and 

knowing full well what it was to have a 
home far removed from the advai 
civilization in a dense forest, through which 
the wolves prowled and deer roamed, he 
early became inured t" hard work and 
knows how t" appreciate hones) t"il at its 
true value. I lis prominence in the com- 
munity is the legitimate result 1 f genuine 
merit and ability, and in every relation 
whether in the humble spin-re of private 
citizenship or as a trusted official with | 
responsibilities resting upon him, his many 
excellencies of character and the able and 
impartial manner in which he discharged 
his every duty won for him an enviable rep- 
utation as an enterprising and representative 
self-made man. In Mr. Plummer's veins 
flows the blood of a long line of sterling 
English and German ancestors. Early in 
ilonial period the Plummers were liv- 
X'nth Carolina, in which state many 
years later John Plummer, the subject's fa- 
ther, was born. When a young man he 
went t" Preble county, < Hiio, when that part 
of the country was but sparsely settled, and 
then purchased land and engaged in 
cultural pursuits. Mis father also was an 
early settler of Preble county and spent the 
remainder of his days the- successful 

cultivator of the soil. 

Some time in the 'twenties John Plum- 
mer changed his residence t" Union county, 
Indiana, where he entered about eighty 
r.cres rnment land, from which in 

i\w time he cleared and developed a p 
farm. The "Id Hannah (reek church 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



493 



of the tirst organizations of the Christians 
(or Disciples) in eastern Indiana, was built 
on this land and the society is still kept up. 
being at this time a strong and healthy or- 
ganization. 

Among' the early settlers of Union coun- 
ty were the Harveys, located not far from 
the place where Mr. Plummer originally 
built his home. In this family was a daugh- 
ter. Ihhie. who in due time became the wife 
of John I'lummer and the union resulted in 
the birth of seven sons and one daughter, 
namely : Mary, Henderson, Daniel, John, 
Frederick. Eli. Samuel and James. 

In early life John Plummer united with 
the Christian church and some years later 
was chosen an elder of the congregation to 
which he belonged. Subsequently he en- 
tered the ministry and for a period of twen- 
ty-rive years preached acceptably for many 
churches in various parts of Indiana and be- 
came widely known for his ability as a pub- 
lic proclaimer of the gospel and for its ex- 
emplar}' Christian character. He did much 
to introduce the doctrines peculiar to the 
Disciples among the sparse settlements of 
Union. Kosciusko and other counties and is 
remembered for his zeal as a pioneer 
preacher at a time when it required great 
fearlessness and independence to combat 
and overcome the prejudice which long pre- 
vailed against the faith he represented. 

Early in the 'thirties John Plummer dis- 
posed of his interests in Union county and 
entered nine hundred and sixty acnes of 
land in what is now Prairie township in the 
county of Kosciusko. Later he purchased 
second-handed an additional two hundred 
acres, partly woodland and partly prairie, 
and became one of the largest real estate 
owners in Prairie township. There were 



living in the township at the time of his ar- 
rival the Summey. Harlan. Hughes. Bish- 
op, Powell and one or two other families, 
these being the first permanent residents 
of the territory now included in the town- 
ship of Prairie. Mr. Plummer cleared a 
great deal of land, but continued to exer- 
cise the duties of his holy office as a minis- 
ter of the gospel as long as he lived, work- 
ing .in the woods and fields of week days 
and frequently riding from ten to twenty 
miles to fill his appointments upon Lord's 
days. He bore a prominent part in public 
affairs, served as justice of the peace for a 
number of years and, as an old-line Whig", 
was a local politician of considerable re- 
pute. His influence was always potent for 
good and his death, which occurred about 
the year 1856 or '57, was greatly deplored 
in the community. Mrs. Plummer survived 
her husband some years, departing this life 
in 1866. 

James Plummer, of this review, was 
born in Union county. Indiana. Augiist 9, 
1826. When a lad of nine years he was 
brought by his parents to Prairie township, 
Kosciusko county, and as soon as old 
enough to be of any practical service was 
put to work in the woods where, by yielding 
the ax for many years he developed strength 
of muscle and of general bodily powers that 
enabled him to make a full hand at an age 
when most boys are barely out of their 
childhood. In such schools as the country 
then afforded he obtained a rudimentary 
education : his first teacher was a Mr. 
Moore, who seemed to think the easiest way 
to reach a boy's intellect was by means of a 
tough hickory rod vigorously applied. This 
pedagogue did make the hoys "smart." if 
he did not succeed in awakening their men- 



494 



(PEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



tal facii he meted out condign pun- 

ishment for what would now be considei 
the most trifling and insignificant infr; 
ti"n- of school discipline. 

.Mr. Plummer's second teacher w; 
gentleman by the name of John F. Parks, 
who organized a little subscription school in 
3 cabin on the- Plummer home- 
id. While in every way superior to the 
former, except perhaps in his ability 
wield the birch. Mr. Parkei sed only 

mediocre ability and beyond reading, writ- 
ing, and arithmetic to the "double rule of 
three," his professional attainments <liil not 
Subsequently, when education in north- 
ern Indiana received an impetus by reason 
of a more liberal expenditure of public 
money, better qualified teachers were < 
ployed, and when a young man Mr. Plum- 
mer, uniler the direction of such, made sub- 
stantial progress in his studies and became 
unusually well informed for that day. 

After the deatli of his father the subject 
and his brother Eli purchased of the other 
heirs their respective shares in the home 
farm and they continued to run the place 
jointly until the latter'- death in 1894. 
Since then James Hummer has owned the 
estate and is now one of the and 

most successful agriculturists and stock- 
raisers in the township, also one of its r 
enterprising and intelligent men of affairs. 
In his business dealings he has been uni- 
forml) ful, owning a large and valu- 

able amount of real estate, and ranks with 
the financially strong and reliable met 
tow nship and county. 

Mr. Plummer has read much 
thought much ami his mind i~ well 
th a large fund of valuable kn< 
derived not only from ind pap 



but from contact with rid in various 

business and official capacities. A student 
litical history, particularly that r< 
the origin and ment of par- 

is reading and it tion early led 

him to become a Whig and later a Repub- 
Many years became a potent 

in local politics and a recognized 
leader of his party in the township in which 
he lived. The first official ]>osition to which 
he was elected was that of township clerk. 
the duties of which office he discharged in 
an able and satisfactory manner for a per- 
riod of eleven years. Subsequent!} 
1864, he was elected a meml>er of the I 
■ f county commis to represent the 

northern district and he rilled the place 
until 1870, having been chosen his 
own successor in 1863. During his 
incumbency as commissioner much im- 
portant business was transacted, among 
which was tin the old county farm 

and the purchase of the present one. the 
erection of the buildings and other improve- 
ments, and the levy for the new court house. 
which was built in 1872. Numerous pub- 
lic improvements were made in diff< 

of the county, in all of which Mr. 
Plummer took the lead, although he pi 

e and conservative custodian of the 
people's interests and never inaugurated any 

re or undertook any enterpi 
fully satisfied of its necessity and that in so 
g he won].; he heartily supported by 
intelligent public opinion. Mr. Plummer 
retired from the ln.aril with a clean n 
and tin iinty. irrespective 

political ties, speak in the highest terms 

ncy and faithful 1 pains- 

taking pub 'it. He still takes an 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



495 



as well as in canity affairs, using his in- 
fluence to promulgate principles which he 
deems best for the country and expressing 
Ins opinions freely upon all matters. 

Air. Plummet- has been a member of the 
Masonic brotherhood for nearly forty years ) 
he belongs to Leesburg Lodge No, i<Si. in 
which he has held official positions from 
worshipful master down. He is an enthusi- 
astic Mason and endeavors to exemplify 
the noble precepts and teachings of the 
order in his relations with his brethren and 
with the world at large. He was blessed 
with godly parents and in childhood and 
youth received instruction in religion and 
morality which has had a controlling influ- 
ence upon his life and character. When 
young he united with the Christian church 
and so has continued to the present, rarely 
absenting himself from public worship un- 
less by reason of sickness or some exceed- 
ingly important cause. He is a close stu- 
dent of the sacred scriptures and considers 
them a sufficient rule of faith and practice 
without the aid of any human creed or man- 
made articles of faith. Mr. I'lummer is a 
liberal supporter of the congregation at 
Leesburg, in addition to which he also free- 
ly contributes to all benevolent and chari- 
table enterprises whereby the needy and un- 
fortunate may be benefited. All movements 
having for their object the material ad- 
vancement of the community have his sup- 
port, as he has always stood for progress 
and improvement in all those terms imply. 

Mr. Plummer has never married. He 
has devoted his time and energies to so- 
ciety and to the world and his life has been 
fraught with great good to his fellow men. 
Few men in Kosciusko county are as widely 
known and none stand higher than he in the 



esteem and confidence of the public. He 
has lived according to his highest concep- 
tion of manhood and citizenship and his life 
may be studied with much profit by the 
young men of the rising generation. 



ISAAC M. POWELL. 

This worthy old pioneer is one of the 
few remaining links in the chain that con- 
nects the present age to a period long buried 
in the mists of the past. He enjoys the dis- 
tinction of being the oldest living settler of 
Prairie township, and has been a witness of 
Kosciusko's development from the virgin 
forest and prairie to its present prosperous 
condition as one of Indiana's most advanced 
and enlightened counties. Homes and vil- 
lages have sprung up on everv hand since 
he first saw the county in its primitive wild- 
ness and beauty : forests have disappeared 
before the ax wielded by the strong arm of 
the woodman : farms, with fertile, well- 
tilled fields, fine orchards, comfortable build- 
ings and all the adjuncts of civilization, 
have taken the place of the tangled wilder- 
ness which sheltered numerous beasts of 
prey and, at no very remote period, the 
painted savage. The music of traffic, min- 
gled with the notes of ceaseless industry, 
make melody where once the solitudes were 
broken at intervals by the scream of the 
ferocious wild animal or disturbed by the 
symphony of the breeze, the dirge of the 
winter storm, or the first blasts of the ter- 
rible tornado. 

The Powell family, to which the subject 
belongs, is of German descent and was first 
represented in this county by certain an- 



496 



COUPEXPILWI OF BIOGRAPHY. 



cestors who came t- ■ the shores of the new 
world at a very remote period in the past 
and settled in Virginia. In an early day 
Mr. Powell's paternal grandfather mi- 
grated to Ohio, when that state was on the 
outskirts of civilization, and there John 
Powell, the subject's father, was born and 
reared. Among the pioneer fa/nilies 
Ohio who located near the Powell settle- 
ment were the Morrises, also natives of Vir- 
ginia. A daughter, Dorothy Morris, grew 

to young womanhood in the neighbor!) 1 

and between her and John Powell an inti- 
macy sprang up which eventually resulted 
in marriage. 

Mr. Powell and his wife began house- 
keeping on rented land and he continued to 
till the soil in that way until 1832, in the 
Spring of which year he came to Elkhart 
county. Indiana, before the land was opened 
for settlement, and selected a site for Ids 
future home. Clearing a number of acres, 
he put out a small crop and after tending it 
that summer returned to ( >hio, and late the 
following fall removed his family to the 
wilderness of what is now one of the fairest 
and most prosperous counties of northern 
Indiana. After spending the greater part 
of oik- winter there and experiencing many 
vicissitudes and hardships, he went the fol- 
lowing February to that part of Kosciusko 
county known as I'rairie township and se- 
I a claim in section II, upon which he 
erected a small log cabin, after which he re- 
turned to Elkhart county for his family. 
During his absence a number of friendly 
Indians, who had a small village a short 
distance south of his claim, tore down the 
cabin, cut new logs and rebuilt it from the 
ground up. chinking the cracks, puttii 

tnd making of the little edifice 



a tolerably comfortable habitation for those 
times. Mr. Powells' surprise upon his re- 
turn with his family may be better imag 
than described. From that tin < - long 

as the Indians remained in the country, 
their relations with the pioneer's family 
were of the most pleasant and agreeable na- 
ture and many acts of kindness were shown 
by both parties while they continued as 
neighbors. 

With the exception of the Powell fam- 
ily, there were no permanent settlers in 
I'rairie until the spring of [834, at which 
time one Hiram Summey moved to the 
township and a little later the same year 
Jame> Bishop and family located a claim 
and became residents. Privation and hard- 
ship appear to have been the common lot of 
these three families, as they were far re- 
moved from any settlement and were ob- 

go a distance of thirty-two mill 
reach the nearest mill, and in cases of sick- 
ness which were by no means infrequent, 
the sufferers had to rely uix>n simple home 
treatment or await the arrival of a physician 
who lived twenty-two miles away. 

Uaac M. Powell was l>orn in Fairfield 
county. Ohio, December jo. 1830, and was 

hut three years ,,1,1 when the family located 
in the wilderness of northern Indiana Ik- 
grew up during the pioneer period and ex- 
perienced in full all the trials, privations and 
sufferings which fell to the lot of those 
whose early lives were surrounded by such 
conditions. For several years after the 
Powells moved to Kosciusko county the few 
ttlers lived too far apart to maintain t 
school, consequently the children w< 
obliged to get along without educational 
privileges, or else received at home such 
little instruction as their parents were able 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



497 



to impart. The subject's first teacher was 
one John Young, who taught a small sub- 
scription school sometime in the 'thirties. 
He is remembered as a man of comparative- 
ly no intellectual attainments and appears 
to base used the rod as his chief means of 
imparting knowledge. The next pedagogue 
to wield the scepter of authority over the 
voting: in the neighborhood was a deaf man 
by the name of Moore, who made up for 
loss of hearing by the strength of muscle 
with which he applied the birch to the backs 
and legs of the pupils that attended his 
school. Under the direction of these and 
other equally incompetent teachers young 
Isaac's early intellectual growth was retard- 
ed rather than developed, and the wonder iy 
that he made the progress that he did in the 
few elementary branches which at that time 
constituted the curriculum of the backwoods 
schools. Subsequently, when a young man. 
he applied himself very diligently under 
more competent instructors and. realizing 
the value of an education, pored over his 
books of evenings and of spare times until 
he was pronounced sufficiently qualified to 
teach the children and young men and 
young women of the neighborhood. 

Air. Powell taught one term in Prairie 
township in 1853, and while his school 
would hardly come up to the high standard 
by which schools of the present day are 
measured, he was far in advance of the ma- 
jority of teachers at that time and made a 
great reputation as a popular and efficient 
instructor. From the time be was able to 
be of any assistance on the farm his days 
were spent in a ceaseless round of toil and 
Ik contributed his full share towards clear- 
ing the land and cultivating the soil. On 
attaining his majority he took charge of the 



home place and farmed the same until his 
marriage, which was solemnized October 
_'3. 1854. with Miss Angeline Summey, 
daughter of Frederick and Adeline ( Trum- 
bull) Summey. Airs. Powell's parents were 
among the early settlers of Kosciusko coun- 
ty, moving here in the spring of [833 and 
entering land in Prairie township. After 
his marriage Air. Powell located in Clu- 
nette. where he lived until the fall of 1856, 
when he purchased a farm in Prairie town- 
ship, which he made his home till 1S74. In 
that year he disposed of his place at a good 
round figure and purchased the old home- 
stead, consisting of three hundred and fifty 
acres of fine land, which with improvements 
since added and the high state of cultivation 
to which it has been brought, is now con- 
servatively estimated to be worth twenty 
thousand dollars. This is one of the larg- 
est and best-cultivated farms in a township 
long noted for its advancement in agricul- 
ture and general development, also ranking 
with the finest and most valuable places in 
the country. 

Air. Powell has been a progressive 
farmer and his financial success has been 
commensurate with his efforts as at, intelli- 
gent husbandman and the interest he has al- 
ways taken as a student of agricultural 
science. By carefully studying the nature 
of soils and paying particular attention to 
the proper rotation of crops he has never 
failed to reap bountiful harvests front his 
well-tilled fields, while his success a- a 
raiser of fine live stock has added much to 
the ample means which are now his. 

After accumulating a comfortable for- 
tune. ATr. Powell wisely concluded to retire 
from the active work of the farm, and in a 
life of honorable retirement enjoy si -me of 



198 



WPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



the fruits of his many years of toil. Ac- 
cording!) he turned his agricultural inter- 
ithers and of late has been liv- 
quiet and content, doing little besides 
looking after hi- private affairs and giv- 

i those who manage his place the bene- 
fit i if his ripe experience. 

To Mr. and Mrs. Powell have been lx>rn 
six children, whose names and date- ol 
birtli illows: Nelson W., July _><> 

1855, married Ella Anglin and lives in 
Prairie township; Warren J., September 
25, 1857, married Jerusha Webster and also 

in the township of Prairie; Mary A., 
born November 14. 1859, is the wife of 
diaries L. W'ray. a farmer and stock raiser 
of the same part of the county; John R., 
January 5, [863, died of smallpox in the 
spring of [864; Dorotha K.. born October 
jS. [867. died December 15th of the same 
year; the youngest of the family. Fred S.. 
was born October j.}. 1869, and died in 

her. [896. 

Mr. Powell has always taken pains 

keep himself well informed upon current 

events and political affairs, having been 

, quite a reader, as well as a close and in- 

enl observer. In national, state and 
district affairs he gives his allegiance to the 
Democratic party, but in matter- purely 
local he votes for the man regardless of po- 
litical ties. In 1S7S he was elected assessor 
of Prairie township, serving eight years, 
and in [900 lie was again elected to the 

. the duties of which he is now dis- 
charging, having three years yet to -ewe lie- 
fore the expiration of his last term. His 

ment upon all matter- coming within 
the range of his office is sound and he has 
proved himself in every respect worthy the 
confidence reposed in him by his fellow chi- 



lli- popularity with the peopli 
well as his eminent fitness for the offii 
hold- are demonstrated by the fact of his 
having been elected as by forty ma- 

jority in a township which has always been 
reliably Republican by from thirty-fi 
sixty votes. In the year [882 Mr. Powell 

lis party's candidate for county ti 
urer. Running ahead of his ticket by al- 
most five hundred votes, the overwhelming 
strength of the opposition could not he 
overcome; he was defeated by a small ma- 
jority after a very gallant fight, the race 
more than ever attesting the high esteem in 
which he is held by Republicans and Demo- 
crats alike. Fraternally Mr. Powell 
Mason, belonging to Lodge No. 181 at 
Leesburg. lie has filled various offici 
the lodge, and. believing in the great prin- 
ciples upon which the fraternity is based, 
has Keen largely controlled l>y them in his 
daily life. 

In the widest sense of the term Mr. 
Powell is a Christian, sincere in his b 

active in reducing the precepts of Holj 
Writ to practice, and untiring in his efforts 

read the gospel at home and in lands 
beyond the sea-. He and wife hold mem- 
bership in the Christian (or Disciples) 
church and are among the most zealous 
workers in the congregation with which 
they are identified. 

Mr. Powell's protracted resilience in the 
county of Kosciusko has made his name 
widely and familiarly known throughout all 
of its parts. His life and the histoi 
Prairie township have been pretty much the 
same thing. He ha- seen the community 
grow from an insignificant backwoods set- 
tlement into one of the most prosper 

ommonwealth. Hi- coming here anil 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



499 



the existence of the township were coeval 
events, for much of its growth and pros- 
perity are indebted to him. He has been 
one nf its humblest laborers and wisest coun- 
sellors. He has been a western man in the 
broadest sense of the term; realizing the 
wants of the people, he has supplied the de- 
mands generously and unsparingly. His 
has been a long life of honor and trust and 
no higher eulogy can be passed upon him 
than tn state the simple truth that his name 
has never been coupled with anything dis- 
reputable and that there has never been the 
shadow i if a stain upon his reputation for 
integrity and unflinching honesty. Mr. 
Powell has been a consistent man in all he 
has ever undertaken and his career in pri- 
vate life and as an official has been utterly 
without pretense. He is respected by all 
who know him and the county of Kos- 
ciusko can boast of no better man or m< ire 
enterprising citizen. 



WILLIAM BALSLEY. 

It is a pleasure to investigate the career 
of a successful, self-made man. Peculiar 
honor attaches to that individual who. be- 
ginning the great struggle of life alone and 
unaided, gradually overcomes unfavorable 
environment, removes one by one the ob- 
stacles from the pathway of success and by 
the master strokes of his own force and vi- 
tality succeeds in forging his way to front 
and winning for himself a competency and 
a position of esteem and influence among 
his fellow men. Such is the record of the 
popular citizen of Prairie township to a 
brief synopsis of whose life and character 



the reader's attention is herewith respect- 
fully Jnvited. William Balsley is a native 
i ii Kosciusko county and a si >n i if i >ne i if the 
many substantial men that Ohio has given 
to the Hoosier state. His father, John Bals- 
ley, was born in Ohio of German parentage, 
and his mother, Nancy N. Davis, also a na- 
tive of Ohio, was of Irish lineage. These 
parents were married in Morrow county, 
Ohio, and were among the original pioneers 
of northern Indiana, moving to this county 
as long ago as 1834 and settling in what is 
now Prairie township. Two years later 
John Balsley entered two hundred acres of 
land in sections 4 and 5 and after obtaining 
patents from the government began clear- 
ing his land and otherwise improving it. 
He was a true type of the strong, deter- 
mined pioneer whom no obstacle could dis- 
hearten nor any hardships discourage. He 
developed a good farm, accumulated a 
sufficiency of this world's goods to make his 
latter years comfortable, and died in 1871 
at the age of seventy years. His wife, to 
whom he was largely indebted for the suc- 
cess which he attained, reached the age of 
seventy-six years when she was called to the 
other life in 1893. They were an estima- 
ble couple, highly respected in the commun- 
ity and lived consistent Christian lives, for 
many years having been zealous members 
of the Baptist church. It is a fact worthy 
of note that the large majority of the pio- 
neers were men of strong political convic- 
tions, a rule to which John Balsley was no 
exception, hi early life he was an ardent 
Whig, but when that old historic party 
ceased to exist he became equally zealous as 
a Republican and so continued to the end 
of his days. Mr. and Mrs. Balsley had four 
children: George W.. deceased: Marv. 



50o 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



wife of Joseph Jackson, of Edgar county, 

Illinois; William, of this review, and one 
that died in infancy. 

William Balsley was born on the home 
farm in I'rairie township April <>. 1846, 
and to the present time has spent hi> life 
within the geographic limits of Kosciusko 
county. In his childhood and youth he at- 
tended the common schools and until eight- 
een years old remained on the farm, attend- 
ing to such duties ;i> fell to his lot and prov- 
dutiful son and valuable assistant. At 
the above age he bought forty acres of the 
farm where he now lives, going in debt for 
the land without the promise of any assist- 
ance other than that which two strong arms 
and a vigorous physical constitution hacked 
by a determined will, provided, lie built a 
log house on his place and. addressing him- 
self to ilu- task of clearing off the timber, 
soon -aw the forest monarchs fall under his 
lusty stroke- and it was not long until a 
goodly number of acre- were ready for the 
plow. lie continued t" prosecute his hilars 
alone about four year- when, thinking that 
effective service could lie accomplished 
with the aid of a companion to take care of 
his home and keep hi- domestic aft.v 
order, he married, on the 5th dav of De- 
cember, 1865, Mi— Margaret J. Lyons, 
whose parent- came t" Kosciusko county 
from Ohio about the year 1863. Mr-. . 
ley ha- received a good education and for 
time prior to her marriage was a teach- 
er in the public schools of this township. 

Mr. and Mr-. Balsley began housekeep- 
ing in the little log cabin he had formerly 
built and for a number of year- thereafter 
lived live- of contentment, bending all their 
ries to improve their condition ami add 
to their possessions. By hard work and suc- 



ssful management Mr. Balsley gradually 
succeeded in his undertakings, and in due 
time increased hi- original purchase until he 
found himself the fortunate possessor of one 
hundred acres of land, the greater pan of 
which he has highly improved. Hi- present 
beautiful dwelling, one of the best buildi 
of the kind in the township, wa- erected in 
[899 and -lands on the -p>t formerly occu- 
pied by the little log house in which theg 1 

wife set up her first dome-tic establishment. 
Mr. Balsley 's residence i- modern in every 
detail, contains nine large and commodi 
rooms and wa- constructed after plans pre- 
pared entirely by Mrs. Balsley, whoa \ 
judgment is manifest throughout the entire 
structure. The bouse 1- a model of com 
and utility, supplied with water from a 
lar^c and well-built cistern, and the fur- 
nishing i- in harmony with the interior de- 

jns and architectural beauty of the edifice. 
Surrounding the house are shade tree-. 
ever) feature of the building and pren 
bespeaking a spirit of thrift and ^'""l I 
which makes the place one of the most 
beautiful and comfortable rural homes in 
Prairie township. 

A- -tated in a preceding paragraph. Mr. 
Balsley went in debt for hi- land and when 
he ami his wife began housekeeping he 
compelled to In .now money with which to 
purchase the few article- of furniture and 
household utensils necessary to begin life 
with any degree of convenience and comfort 
Since then his course has l>een steadily on- 
ward and upward and today he owns on« 
the most attractive and valuable farms in 
tlie county and a dwelling costing, indud 
hi- own lal»or. nearly two thousand doll 
Mr. Balsley ha- been a man of resoui 

ami his judgment and tact in the man.! 



COMPEXDIL'M OF BIOGRAPHY 



501 



nient of his agricultural interests and busi- 
ness transactions have enabled him to over- 
come obstacles which would have discour- 
aged a man of less energy and will power 
and win for himself a high standing in the 
community where he lives. By no means an 
old man, being in fact in the very period 
of life, he has already acquired sufficient 
means to enable him to turn his interests 
over to his sun and retire from the active 
duties of the farm. 

Personally Mr. Balsley is a warm and 
true friend. Fearlessness is one of his 
marked characteristics and he shuns not to 
do what he considers his whole duty, re- 
gardless of the consequences. Above all, he 
has been a man of unquestioned integrity 
and unblemished honor, and he will do noth- 
ing which could lower himself in his own 
esteem or in that of others; his standard is 
high and he has always endeavored to live 
so that his example might safely be imitated 
by the young men of the rising generation. 
Ever read\- to contribute of his means and 
influence to all objects, whether material, 
charitable or religious, he is considered one 
of the most enterprising and progressive 
men of the community and in a large sense 
he is and always has been a true benefactor 
of his fellow men. 

Three children have been born to Air. 
and Airs. Balsley, two of whom, John and 
William, are deceased. Charles, the surviv- 
ing son, was lorn on the 2d day of June, 
[878. lie is a well educated young man 
and possesses musical talent of a high order, 
being an accomplished violinist and also an 
Organist and pianist of rare ability. For 
several years he was leader of the Prairie 
Township Hand and as such did much to 
promote the efficiency and skill of its dif- 



ferent members, making the society one of 
the leading and most popular musical organ- 
izations of the kind in the county of Kos- 
ciusko. • He married Miss Ada Maloy, of 
this county, and recently took charge of his 
father's farm, which he will manage from 
this time forward. 

William Balsley is a Republican in his 
political views and since old enough to ex- 
ercise the rights of citizenship has been a 
firm adherent of his party and a zealous 
worker in its ranks. He is usually chosen 
to represent his precinct and township in 
conventions, but has never aspired to of- 
fice, the only public position he ever held 
being that of supervisor. In matters relig- 
ious he has well defined views. While not 
connected with any church, his purse has 
been at the command of religious and benev- 
olent objects, especially to the local organ- 
ization of the Church of God, of which his 
wife is an earnest and consistent member. 
Air. and Airs. Balsley are among the oldest 
people of Prairie township in point of con- 
secutive residence and none in this part cf 
the county are more widely and favorably 
known. 



HAXS S WAX SOX. 



Among the substantial men whose labor 
and influence gave impetus tc the agricult- 
ural interests and general material improve- 
ment-- of Kosciusko county in years gone 
by and who today occupies a high place in 
the esteem of the community in which he 
lives is the worthy gentleman whose name 
introduces this article. Connected as he 
was for a period of years with one of the 
most important railroad companies in the 






c OMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



west and prominently identified with the 
materia] growth of Kosciusko and Marshall 
c •untie-, he has been a forceful factor in 
the industrial circle- and a leading citizen 
in all thai concerns the public good. 

Hans Swanson i- an American by adop- 
tion, but the country has no mure loyal sup- 
porter nor have it- laws and institutions a 
more ardent admirer. Jle i- of Scandi- 
navian birth and hails from far-off Nor- 
way, having been born in Christiania, the 
capita] of that country, in the month of 
March. 1851. His people for generations 
were natives of the Northland and from the 
most reliable information obtainable appear 
always to have obtained their livelihood as 
tillers of the soil. His father, a tanner by 
occupation, <li<l not own real estate of hi> 
own. but cultivated land as a renter, as '1" 
main '>t' the respectable middle class Swedes 
and Norwegians. He provided well for his 
family, but was not aide to furnish any of 
his children with much of a Mart in life 
owing t" the conditions which the landlords 
exacted from their tenant-. 

From the age "t' seven until hi- four- 
teenth year young Swanson attended the 
public schools <>l hi- native country and 
made rapid progress in hi- studies. When 
eighteen years of age 1» 
which In mnd him to hi- home and started 
out to make his own living a- a farm 
laborer, receiving for hi- service- from sue 

to twelve cent- per day. Having read 
much about America and heard from some 
of his countrymen who had gone thither 
favorable reports of the great country be- 
yond the water-, he determined to seek his 

fortune there a- soon a- he could save 

i\ sufficient t" pay hi- passage Find- 
.t t<> impossible to lay by enough 



from his -canty earnings t" purchase a ticket 
to the United State-, he finally applied to t 
friend for a loan. The money born 
with what he already had saved, enabled him 
to carry out his desire of long standing, ami 
in April, 1869, he looked for the last time 

upon the romanti hildh 1. 

Taking p se] for New York. 

In reached that ix >rt in due time and found 
himself a stranger in a strange land, where 
manners and customs radically differed 
any he had hitherto known. From New 
York he made hi- way westward a- far a- 
Marshall county, Indiana, stopping at the 
town of Bourbon, where he secured employ- 
ment as a wood chopper with the Pennsyl- 
vania Railroad Company. 

Mr. Swanson remained at the above 
place until 1871, when he changed his abode 
t" Atw 1. Kosciusko county, meantime be- 
coming a section hand on the road, in which 
capacity he continued until promoted fore- 
man of a section in 1879. While working 
common hand his wages were hut a 
dollar per day. yet from this meager sum he 
managed to lay by little by little until at the 
end of seven years he found himself the 
possessor of three hundred dollars in cash. 
With this money he made the tir-t payi • 
011 a piece of land valued at twenty-one hun- 
dred dollars, going in debt to the amount 

of eighteen hundred dollars, a step which 

few would have ventured to make. Renting 
tile farm to a good tenant, he remained with 
the railroad as section foreman at increased 
5, continuing thus for four year-, dur- 
ing which time hi- earnings, with what he 
received from the proceeds of the ; 
were sufficient to cancel the indebtedm - 
tile land. 

A line farm free of incumbrance marked 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



503 



a new era in the life of Mr. Swanson and 
from that time forward his progress as an 
agriculturist was steady and substantial. 
He brought to the farm the same energy and 
determination that marked his course on the 
road and by thrift and economy, supple- 
mented by the best kind of management, 
soon succeeded in increasing" his estate, pur- 
chasing additional land from time to time 
until he now has three hundred and fifty 
acres, conservatively estimated to be worth 
at least fifteen thousand dollars. He also 
owns much valuable personal property, not- 
ably fine live stock, good farming imple- 
ments, besides a handsome surplus of ready 
capital, which with his other possessions as- 
sures a future free from the cares by which 
so many people in old age are beset. 

Mr. Swanson was married September 8, 
1878, to Miss Carrie Johnson and is the fa- 
ther of four sons. The oldest is Scott, who 
married Mary Guy and lives on one of 
his father's farms. Harry, the second in 
order of birth, is his father's able assistant 
on the home place. Charles and Walter, 
who are also at home, are promising voting 
boySj educated and standing high in the es- 
teem of the people of the community. Mr. 
Swanson is a warm friend of education and 
gave his children the best school privileges 
obtainable. Scott is a graduate of the At- 
wood public school, and the other sons are 
well advanced in their studies. 

Mr. Swanson's political views are de- 
cidedly Republican and for some years he 
has been an active worker in the party, be- 
lieving firmly in the correctness of its prin- 
ciples and the dignity of its mission, lie 
has Keen a delegate to a number of conven- 
tions, county and town-hip. but would never 
permit his name to come before these bodies 



as an aspirant for official honors. He is an 
enthusiastic member of the Pythian frater- 
nity, having passed all the chairs in his 
lodge and at the present time holds the of- 
fice of vice chancellor. For eight years he 
was master of exchequer, the duties of 
which important position he discharged in 
an able and praiseworthy manner. He is 
also a charter member of the American Or- 
der of Gleaners, in which he carries a lib- 
eral insurance, his wife belonging to the 
same society. Religiously they are both 
identified with the United Brethren church 
of Atwood, of which Mr. Swanson has been 
trustee for a number of years. He is active 
111 the Sunday-school, besides being first 
and foremost in all good work of the con- 
gregation ; in fact, he is and fi >r years has 
been one of the pillars of the church, ready 
at all times to contribute to its financial sup- 
port, and has never failed in his allegiance 
to his vows as an humble and devout dis- 
ciple of the Xazarene. 

Mr. Swanson has long been a prominent 
factor in advocating and working for public 
improvements. He stands for progress in 
all the term implies and in this respect has 
set an example which should be followed by 
those who are at all interested in the ma- 
terial prosperity of the township and count v. 
During the twenty-three years of his con- 
nection with the Pennsylvania railroad as 
section foreman he had the unbounded con- 
fidence of his superiors. In the inspection 
of that part of the road between Fort Wayne 
and Plymouth in [89] his section was pro 
nounced second to but one on the division, 
a tact which speaks well for his efficiencv as 
a manager of men and for his faithfulness 
ir. making his employers' interests his own. 

.Mr. Swanson is strictly a temperate man 



504 



COMPEMUi'M OF BIOGRAPHY. 



never having indulged in any kind of intox- 
icants nor used tobacco in any of it -^ forms. 
His correct habits and temperate manner of 
living have brought him superb health, in 
which respect his family has also l>een great- 
ly blessed. Although a foreigner bj birth 
and entertaining fond memories of his na- 
tive land, he is firm in his allegiance to the 
country of his adoption, which lie believes 
to be tin- greatest and best domain upon 
which the sun has ever shone. He is a 
great admirer of it> law- and institutions, 
and it necessary would prove hi- loyalty a- 
a citizen l>v laying down hi- life in it- de- 
fense. 

In many respects the career of Mr. 
Swanson is peculiarly instructive and com- 
mendable. It i- a complete triumph over 
apparently insurmountable obstacles by a 
young man with absolutely no mean- at his 
command except his hands and inflexible 

integrity. He came to the new world, as 
alread) stated, a stranger with nothing at 
his command but a determination to make 
the lx.-st of his opportunities, and how well 
he has succeeded in this laudable endeavor 
i- demonstrated by the fortune he has ac- 
quired in material things and the high posi- 
tion in the world which he ha- reached. 1 Ie 
is .me of the most popular men of his com- 
munity, genial, companionable, ever ready 
to do a favor or make a sacrifice wherein 
hi- fellow man may be benefited or the 
country profited. 

Like her husband, Mrs. Swanson i- also 
a native of Norway. As wife and mother 
-he ha- diligently and earnestly watched 
over and reared her family, instilling into 
the mind- of her offspring correct prin- 
ciple- and Sparing no pain- to foster noble. 



manly habit-. She embraced religion in her 
youth and throughout Iter life has mani- 
fested a pure, noble Christian character. 



< HARLES M. MILLER. 

While Virginia ha- been aptly termed 
the "Mother of Presidents," -he ha- also 
given to the country many of it- most en- 
terprising and successful people in minor 
capacities and thousands in the humble 
sphere of private citizenship trace their an- 
cestr) back to the ( >ld Dominion. This '- 
true of the gentleman whose brief life his- 
torj i- -et forth in the following lines. Just 
when the original progenitor of the Miller 
family became a resident of Virginia i- not 
known, but it i- supposed to have been at a 
lime antedating the colonial Struggle for in- 
dependence. A number of year- ago there 
was born in that State one William Miller, 
win i. when in y< >ung manhi tod, w ent t. < < >hi< >. 
thence in a later day moved to Miami coun- 
ty, Indiana, and settled near the town of 
Chili. He was twice married, the tir-t time 
in ( >hio, which union resulted in the birth of 
children a- follows: John. James. William 
and Milton. All were soldiers in the Civil 
war. the last named being killed while bat- 
tling for the Union. Mr. Miller married 
second wife. Catherine 1 'aimer, after 
coming to Indiana and -he bore him 
children, namely : Samuel. Charles M . 
of thi> review. (Jlyases S. G., Eliza J.. Mary 
Etta, Dora. Belle, Bertha and Emma <!.. all 
living but Mary Etta. 

By occupation William Miller was a 
farmer. He purchased a fine tract of land 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



505 



near Chili and continued to cultivate the 
same until 1864, at which time he disposed 
of his interests in Miami county and moved 
tc the county of Kosciusko. On coming to 
the latter he bought one hundred acres in 
Harrison township, to which he subsequent- 
h made additions until he was the owner of 
four hundred and twenty acres, the greater 
part of which under his successful manage- 
ment became highly improved. He was a 
prosperous man and an enterprising citizen, 
although quiet in his ways and a great lover 
of his home and family. All who knew 
him honored him for his man}' sterling qual- 
ities of manhood and the communities in 
which he lived never knew a more upright 
or praiseworthy citizen. When a young 
man he became identified with the Baptist 
church and as a member of that large and 
pn >L;ressive body he did much to disseminate 
its tenets, and donated liberally to the High- 
land congregation, which met for worship 
in a building erected on his farm. Air. Mil- 
ler was a deeply pious man and for many 
years was a pillar in the local church in 
which he held the office of deacon. His life 
was fraught with good works in the service 
of God and humanity and he died a tri- 
umphant Christian death in November, 
1899. Airs. Miller is a fit companion for a 
noble husband and, highly respected for her 
Lovable Christian character, is still living in 
Kosciusko county. 

Charles M. Miller is one of Indiana's 
native sons and is proud of the common- 
wealth which gave him birth. He was born 
in Chili, Miami county, on the 12th day of 
January, 1862. and when two years old was 
brought by his parents to the county of 
which he is now an honored resident. It 
was his good fortune to grow to the years 



of maturity amid the quiet and peaceful 
scenes of rural life, and on the farm he 
first learned the lessons of self-reliance 
which have been of such value to him in 
his subsequent career. When old enough 
he entered the common schools, where he 
proved an apt and diligent pupil, becoming 
at an early age master of the branches con- 
stituting the prescribed course. In his nine- 
teenth year he obtained a teacher's license 
and taught his first term in the winter of 
[S81-2 in the township of Etna. Mr. Miller 
developed much more than average ability 
and tact as an instructor and his services 
were in great demand during the years lie 
devoted to educational work. He continued 
to teach in the schools of Kosciusko county 
until 1896, meanwhile making a record 
which brought him prominently to the 
notice of the public by reason of his ability 
in imparting instruction and in the matter 
of discipline, where so many teachers fail. 

In 1881 Mr. Miller chose for a life com- 
panion Miss Sarah C. Huffer, daughter of 
Daniel and Sarah ( l'.ullenbaugh) Huffer, 
natives of Pennsylvania and of German 
lineage. Airs. Miller was born in Prairie 
township October 27, 1861, attended the 
district schools and received as good an ed- 
ucation as they were capable of imparting. 
After his marriage Mr. Miller farmed as a 
renter for several years, meanwhile devot- 
ing the winter season to school work. Sub- 
sequently he purchased a farm in the town- 
ship of Prairie and continued to cultivate the 
same until 1891, when he abandoned agri- 
cultural pursuits and engaged in the general 
mercantile business at Atwood. 

During the past twelve years Mr. Miller 
has carried on merchandising quite success- 
fully and has become one of the potential 



506 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGKAl'HY. 



in the public affairs of his town and 

township. Like the majority of his fellow 

citizens ■ I Prairie, he i- a Republican in his 

political affiliations and for irs past 

en an active party worker, represent- 

- township in conventions and us 

his influence untiringly t" promote the suc- 

5S of the ticket during campaigns. In 

e was nominated and elected trus 

I 'mine township, the duties of which 
office he has discharged to the present time 
in a manner eminent!) satisfactor) to the 
public, lie ha- made a number <>i vain. 
improvements in the matter of highways, 

. and having been a teacher for many 
years, thus realizing the need- of the schi 
and appreciating the value of a higher or- 
der of professional excellence "ii the part "I 
the teacher-, he ha- devoted much attention 
to the subject of education within his juris- 
diction. It has been his aim to employ only 
ichers a- are intellectually and pro- 
fessionally qualified for the work of instruct- 
ing the young and favorable results of his 
endeavors in this regard are already plainly 
apparent. 

Mr. Miller was reared by religious par- 
ent- and their wholesome influence had 
much to do in shaping his life and mould- 
ing his character. He i- a man of pi 
nounced religious views and. with his wife. 
subscribes to the creed of the United Breth- 
ren church. I'or -i\ successive years he 

superintendent "i the Sunday- 
ool and i- the present incumbent of the 
office. Hi- training in the secular schi 

iliarly fitted him for this responsible |h.- 

ii and the Sunday school of which he 
now ha- charge i- one of the best disciplined 
and most thorough in its work of any in 
the town of Atwobd. He is also a men 



of the board of church trustees, while his 
efforts in behalf of the tion and the 

od work he has done to promote it- ef- 
ficiency have nobly seconded the past 
labor- in bringing souls into the kingdom 
of the Most High. Mr. Miller i- a charter 
member of Atwood Lodge, No. ,}-'<'. K. of 
I'., in which he passed all the chair-. He 
also connected with the ordei ean- 

5, an insurance and benevolent 
holding at this time the highest office within 
the power of the organization to bestow, 
that of chief gleaner. 

Personally Mr. Miller i- a gentleman of 
quiet demeanor, unassuming in hi- r< 
tions with his fellow men. but nevertheli 
|x "pillar with all classes and most highly re- 
spected by those who know him best. He 
ha- read and thought much, possesses a 
broad mind well stored with valuable knowl- 
edge, and it i- but just to -ay that he 
characterized by much broader \iew- and 
wider culture than the majority of men. 
Well posted in the genera] and political I 
tory of the country and keeping in touch 
with the time- on current events, he is 
loyal citizen and a true type of intelligent 
anil -ymetrically developed manho 

To Mr. and Mrs. Miller have been born 
children as follow-: Floyd I'., whose birth 
to,,k place in \\ ; Amy V... Septem- 

ber. [884: Fred C, Vugust 26, [886; Ruth 
1 \pril _"4. [892; and Ralph W.. who v 
born on the 19th day of November. 18 



MRS. M VGGIE W'.I.IW 

Wholly devoted to home and dom< 
duties; doing through all the 
her life the lowly 1 d w< >rk that C 




MRS. MAGGIE ANGLIN 




J.G.ANGLIN 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



507 



within her sphere, there is not much to re- 
cord concerning the life of the average 
woman. And yet what station so dignified, 
what relation so loving and endearing, what 
office so holy, tender and ennobling as those 
of home-making wifehood and motherhood. 
A celebrated writer and biographer once 
said that the future destiny of a great na- 
tion depended upon its wives and mothers. 
May this not also be said concerning the 
future that is bone of her bone, blood of her 
blood and flesh of her flesh, and which is 
incalculable in its results and will never be 
fully known until eternity solves the prob- 
lem? In the settlement of the great middle 
west woman bore her full share of hardship, 
sufferings and other vicissitudes, helping 
man in the rugged toil of wood and field, 
cheering him when cast down and discour- 
aged, sharing his dangers, mitigating his 
sufferings, in the end quietly and unosten- 
tatiously rejoicing in his success, yet ever 
keeping herself modestly in the background 
and permitting her liege lord to enjoy all the 
glory of their mutual achievements. In a 
biographical compendium, such as this work 
is intended to be, woman should have no in- 
significant representation. As man's ecpial 
in every qualification save the physical, and 
his superior in the gentle, tender and loving 
amenities of life, she fully merits a much 
larger notice than she ordinarily receives, 
and the writer of these lines is optimistic 
enough to indulge the prediction that in a 
110 distant future she will receive due credit 

• 

for the important part she acts in life's great 
drama and be accorded her proper place in 
history and biography. The foregoing lines 
were suggested after a perusal of the leading 
facts in the iife career of the worthy and 
highly respected lady whose name furnishes 

31 



the caption of this article, a lady who has 
done well her part in the world and whose 
career from the beginning has been a simple, 
but beautiful poem of rugged, toilsome 
duty faithfully and uncomplainingly per- 
formed as maiden, wife and mother. 

Miss Maggie Zentz, daughter of Chris- 
tian and Rachael ( Bowers) Zentz, is a na- 
tive of Stark county, Ohio, where her birth 
occurred on the ioth day of March, 1844. 
Originally the Zentzes came from Germany 
and the name was familiar in various parts 
of Maryland at an earlv period in the his- 
tory of that colony. Mrs. Anglin's father 
was born in Maryland in 1809 and the 
mother, also a native of that state, first saw 
the light of clay the same year. The Bowers 
were also of German origina, and. like the 
Zentz family, lived in Maryland in the time 
of the colonies. In an early day representa- 
tives of both families migrated to Stark 
county. Ohio, in the local annals of which 
both names are still familiar. They settled 
in the same locality and in due time an in- 
timacy sprang up between Christian Zentz 
and Rachael Bowers which, ripening into 
love, led to marriage about the year 1837. 
The fruits of this union were five sons and 
two daughters, namely: Jeremiah, who 
married Lucinda MoClintoc; Mrs. Harriet 
Rose; Mathias L., unmarried ; William H. 
married Margaret Smith ; Margaret, the 
subject of this sketch; Solomon married 
Lydia Clark: Samuel, who chose a wife in 
the person of Matilda Rub)-: all are living 
except William H. The Bowers have long 
been noted for longevity, the mother of these 
children dying at the age of eighty-six years, 
while several of the family almost reached 
the century mark. The maternal grandfa- 
ther of Mrs. Anglin was Mathias Bowers, 



508 



\1PENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



born in Maryland December 13, 
1774. and on the 25th of December, 17951 
mited in marriage to Catherine Hauck. 
n was blessed with the following 
children: Jacob, born November 1. 1796, 
marrii ih Talmer; Elizabeth, 1 >< >r. 1 

June 18, became the wife of Adam 

Kimmel; Sarah, l«>rn August 16, 1800, wis 
the wife of Jacob Koontz; S born July 

[2, [802, was the wife of David Shri 
irn November 26, 18 . 
united in marriage with Mr. Traster; John, 
I urn July 6, 1807, manic-' 1 a Miss 

was born September 14. 
ami the wife of Christian Zentz, 

he mother of Mrs. Anglin; William, 
lxirn 25, 1S1 1. married £ 

1. born April r8, [814, mar- 
ried; Anna, born Novem was 
the wife of Abraham Grogg; < hai 
born Maj 16, iSji. was the wife of Samuel 

upation Christian Zentz was 
farmer and in addition t" his laboi 
he operated for a number of 
mill on what was formerly known 

After living in Ohio until 1857 he 
disposed of his farm and other property in- 
md came V • K< sciuski 1 coun- 
ty, h \t that time there was still 
ument land remain- 
1 the >tate and Mr. Zenl 
enten in Etna township, on 
whicl mfortable plank 
and began clearing the dense timber with 
which hi- place was overgrown. II > 

il in his purpose of making I farm 

and in due time became quite well situated. 
g remain to enjoy the fruits 
. irting tins life in - 



thirteen when the family moved t 

home in the w Is of Kosciusko county. As 

all possible In needed in developing 

the farm skated not t" x>< into the 

clearing and hear her part in the hard work 
required. It was not long until she learned 
t" wieid the ax and grubbing hue with . 

rity and when fourteen of fifteen 
old could easily do an ordinary hand's work 

thering and piling brush, grubbing 
tending t<> the burning logheaps 
helped grub the undergrowth from the spot 
on which the original plank dwelling st'H.d. 

d, alter its destruction by tire, labo 
equally as hard on the frame building by 
which the first was replaced. For a cow 
of years she attended the public and 

tiled herself of every meager advanl 
which they afforded. Alter h< enth 

r she never, as a student, saw the interior 
of a school n om, but subsequently by much 
reading made up in a large measure her 
earh i mal deficiencies. Her 

quaintance with g I literature is wide, in 

addition to which she has always kept 

• touch with current events and 1- now 
a well informed woman of much more than 
dinary culture. From the age ol 

she worked out and made her own 
living until the time of her marriage t" John 

ti 1 a brief re\ iew of wl 
hi ; let's attention is herewith 

in\ ited. 
Mr. Vnglin was a native of Kosciusko 
ni'.. Indiana, born in the towns 
Etna on the 26th day of January, 18 
His father. Isaac Vnglin, one of the coun- 
ty's ' pioneers, came here from B 
nr county, West Virginia, and t.i.k an 
prominent part in I 
tin mi \ . I le married in his 



COMPEXDIfM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



509 



ve state Miss Catherine Briggs, who In ire 
ini children as follows: John G. ; Mary, 
ite of Jacob Ringenberg, both deceased: 
William B. married Ellen Rusher; Hiram 
led in infancy; and Elam II., who married 
nsMc Thomas. The children born in the 
arents of Isaac Anglin were as follows: 
fancy ( Mrs. James Heatherly), Jane ( Mrs. 
•avid O'Xeal), Abigail (Airs. John 
Weal), Sarah (Mrs. Bennet Hudkins), 
lary t Mrs. Samuel L'rit ). Catherine ( Mrs. 
amuel D. Hall). William (married Sophia 
'hilips), James (married Matilda Hall), 
)hn (married Sarah Johnson), Elizabeth 
Mrs. Joel Martin), Rachel (unmarried), 
ddred (married Rachel Xeter), Isaac (fa- 
ler of John G. Anglin, married Catherine 
iggs), David (married Harriet Wheeler). 
o the parents of Mrs. Isaac Anglin were 
;>rn these children: Catherine (Mrs. Isaac 
.nglin), Elijah (married Elmina Miner), 
William (married Ellenor Moore). John 
married Mary Harlan), Rachel (Mrs. 
(Irian Anglin ). Fredrig ( unmarried ), Levi 
unmarried). Milton (unmarried). Hiram 
married Alice Frazier ) . Harrison ( unmar- 
ed). 

The early life of John G. Anglin was 
retty much like that of all lads raised amid 
ie stirring scenes of a new country. When 
Id enough to work he bore his full share in 
ie woods and fields and grew up a strung, 
:live young man. At the age of twelve he 
,'ceived his first instruction in the mystery 
f books, walking three and a half miles to 
little school which he attended about twi> 
r three months of the winter season. In 
ddition to the daily walk of seven miles 
nd the long hours of study he was obliged 
' assist in starting the fire in the morning 
'hen his turn came, and in this way whal 



education he acquired was obtained. He 
grew up an increasing help to his father un- 
til attaining his majority, when he began 
earning money for himself by farming on 
his father's land, continuing this kind of em- 
ployment until his marriage, at the age of 
twenty-five. Shortly after marriage he set 
up his first domestic establishment on eighty 
acres of land in Prairie township given him 
by his father and at once addressed himself 
to the task of its development. In addition 
to agricultural pursuits he early began deal- 
ing in all kinds of live stock, buying - and 
shipping to the eastern and western mar- 
kets. He followed this line of business for 
about eighteen years with most satisfactory 
financial results, accumulating thereby a for- 
tune which placed him among the wealthiest 
men of the county. In 1891 Mr. Anglin 
purchased a third interest in the Etna Green 
Flouring Mill and later became sole owner 
of the property. This enterprise, like his 
other business affairs, proved largely suc- 
cessful and returned him no small part of 
his income. 

Mr. Anglin had a natural aptitude for 
business and a capacity for inaugurating 
and carrying to successful conclusion large 
undertakings. By keen, discriminating 
judgment and executive ability of a high 
order he added to his possessions from time 
to time until he became, as already stated, 
one of Kosciusko county's largest property 
holders and successful men of affairs. In 
addition to his real estate, which consisted 
of six hundred acres of choice land, he ac- 
cumulated much valuable persona] property, 
his fortune at the time of his death being 
conservatively estimated at forty-five thou- 
sand dollars. He was essentially a self- 
made man and earned every dollar 111 his 



5'° 



COMJ'EXPIUU OF BIOGRAl'HY 



ssion by fair dealing and legitimate 
means, never having resorted t" qui 
able schemes "i- speculative methods. \ 
few weeks prior to his death he divided the 
greater part of his property among his chil- 
dren, reserving sufficient to make the re- 
mainder of hi - own and his \\ ife's days com- 
fortable and free from care. 

< if Mr. Anglin, personally, much in the 
waj of praise can be said. Strictly honest, 
he never defrauded a fellow man to the value 
of a penny and throughout a very active 
busini er none of hi* motives were 

ever impugned m>r was there ever a breath 
of suspicion against hi-* integrity or private 
character. In the largest sense of the term 
he was a Christian ami demonstrated by 
word and act the genuineness of the faith 
he professed. Discarding all human creeds 
ami statement- of doctrine, he united with 
iiristian church, which take- the Bible 
alone a* its rule of faith and practice, and 
remained loyal and true to the same until 
called from the church militant to the 
church triumphant, lie was a liberal sup- 

r of the g 1 work both at home and 

abroad, hut made no ostentations display of 
his piety or benevolence, performing his 
kindly deeds in ; , quiet and unobtrusive way. 
as became a true disciple of the Xa/arene. 
Measured by the highest standard of • 

his life was a nobl( 
ncntly worthy of emulation. Mis activity 
was uninterrupted until a short time before 
his departure ami as he lived he did 

with his might what his hand ami brain 
found to do. In jx dit ic-s he supported the 
principles of Den and while an ar- 

n die traditions and doctrines 
of his party and active in promoting 

i nor in am 



ambitious for official or public distinct 
lie enjoyed popularity with all clas 
his reputation as a neighbor, friend and citi- 
zen was such gain a 1; 
public esteem, all who knew him resecting 
him for his many sterling qualities of 
and heart. Mr. Anglin lived on his farm 
.n Prairie township until [897, at which 
time he changed his r < to the village 
of Etna Green, where, after a short ill 

>slj but trustfully yielded Up his 
'lie 0.1 the 7111 day of June. \X*><). the pri- 
mary ■ ! his death being cancer. 

Mr. and Mrs. Anglin reared a family 
consisting of two s,,ns and three daughters, 
namely: Louemma C. wife of J Burkett, 
oi Wisconsin; Annetta K. now Mrs. Charles 
Klinger, living in Scott township, this coun- 
tv ; Melvin J. married Sarah Estep and re- 
in Mil ford; Edward W., who married 
' ianhorn, lives in lit : the 

youngest of the family. Matilda E., wi 
John Wesley Stackhouse, resident 

of the above village. Since her husband's 

Mrs. Vnglin has continued to 1: 
Etna Green, where her beautiful Christian 
character and useful life have won for her 
an abidir. in the confidence an 

teem of the popul 

S i- has the unbounded love and affection 
of her children and i~ also highly esteemed 
ge circle of warm personal friends 
.-ecu and elsewhere. In her \x 
ful home she dispenses with free hand a 
genuine hospitality which sweetens tin 
come accorded he- and in ■■■ 

charity she contributes liberally of her 1 
to benevolent objects. N".. worth) pi 
applv her for aid 

empty-handed away. and. liki 



E 



;ii 



ouse - and ui 

mau- 

■ 

- 
e and 

none 

;ase 

_ 
he p 
er p : nd mer.- 

righter and better be 

eer- 
ap- 
i 
an I 

£ 

-n. a modern 
orca- nd labor 

i 
Jt ov 
»d fear 



TH' 



"RIGHT. 



:h prese- ing agricuh 

E Prairie . and be 

t effected ^ 

ry. He v. 
*n on the | 

■ 
id Mai right, the 1 

nat mother 

nd. H 

■ 



throughoui 

\ 

- 

- 

n 

\na, 

_ 

Vinamac ai 

■ 
red ar. ved a 

^nd 
nd became 

s 

i 
zen. He continue*! 
where I 

- 
nd char.. 
re his death occurred -ars 

-S an influential man and 
ind 
he acquired an ample com- 
petence and for mar 
the i 

as a leading me 
Ba; -eh and i omental 

de- 
l 

. -. . 

i 



5 I2 



COMI'EXPICM OF BIOGRAl'HY. 



Oliver, John, Thomas J., Cynthia, Sarah, 
Hannah, Nancy A., Mahala and I A'. 

The childhood and youthful yen- 
Thomas J. Wright wen- spent on the home 
place in the woods of Van Buren township 
and by reason of the absence of schi 
grew up without the educational facilil 
which the majority of boys enjoy. \- 
as old enough he was put to work with the 
ax, an implement which he learned t" wield 
with great dexterity, and while a boy in 
his early 'teens he worked alongside of men 
and did the same amount of lalx.r which 
they performed. Living remote from 
neighbors, lie had few associates and 
sadly were his educational privileges 
neglected that at the tune "■' his marn 
he could n< >t write. Later in life lie made 
ii]i for tin- deficiency by diligent private 
study under the direction of his wife, who 
had been a successful school teacher; he not 
<.nly became well acquainted with the or- 
dinary branches, but obtained a wide and 
varied knowledge of history and genera] lit- 
erature and became well informed upon cur- 
rent events, lie was especially apt in or- 
thography and it was almost impossible to 
find a word in the English language that he 
could not -pell correctly and that, too. upon 
the impulse of the moment. In year- gone by 
the old-fashioned spelling school was a | 
ular institution socially a- well a- education- 
ally, and to it i- traceable the knowlei eji 
orthography which the majority of yoi 
men ami women of the early time- possess* 
Mr. Wright was accustomed t<> attend these 
p pular gatherings and invariably carried 
off the honors a- the champion s|K-ller. 1 i 
always the first one chosen and the last t> 
take 1: M the final contest of the 

even 



When a young man he married Miss 
Rebekkah Fuller, daughter of Miner and 
Mary (Mayor) Fuller, the father l««rn in 
Pennsylvania, the mother a native of ! 
land. The Fullers were descendants 
General Ethan Allen, the hero of Ticonder- 
oga, and the Major family came from Eng- 
land in an early day and -ettled in that part 
■ I' Pennsylvania where the former had re- 

since before the Revolutionary strug- 
gle. Mr. and Mr-. Fuller moved to K 
usko county . Indiana, and settled at Milford, 
at which place and elsewhere in Van Buren 
township Mr-. Wright taught school for 
several years before her marriage. 

After his marriage Mr. Wright bej 
farming a- a renter on his father'- farm and 
subsequently moved to Prairie township, 
where he also cultivated the -oil on land 

I for the purpose. 1 le began lit 
very limited circumstances, hut by ei 
and perseverance gradually surmounted the 
many obstacles by which he was beset and 

e time found himself the possessor ol 
sufficient mean- to make a payment on an 
eighty-acre tract of wild land to which he 
at once moved and which ha- since been 
his home. I li- experience in felling the for- 

ind developing his farm was similar in 
all respect- to the hard work which the early 
settlers in all new countries were ol 
to perform, and need not he described in de- 
tail in this connection. Hard and long 
tinued toil was his lot. ami. cheered and en- 
couraged by his faithful helpmate, he _ 
ually extended the area of his cultivable land 
until he had one of the best improved farms 
and most valuable in the township of I'rai- 

I le has added to his tl dif- 

! time- ami today is classed with the 
most enterprising ami successful farmers 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



5i3 



and stock raiders in the community, owning 
property conservatively estimated to be 
worth over ten thousand dollars, every cent 
of which lias been earned by his own efforts, 

Mr. Wright has been a hard-working 
man and he attributes his success to a >n- 
secutive industry and careful management. 
As a tiller of the soil he ranks with the most 
progressive of bis fellow citizens and in the 
matter of live stock, especially the breeding 
and raising of fine Berkshire hogs, his suc- 
cess has long been assured. He keeps him- 
self well posted in everything relating to 
agricultural science and puts his knowledge 
to practical use in the cultivation of his 
:rops. being considered one of the most suc- 
:essful corn raisers in the county of Kos- 
:iuski 1. 

In bis political affiliations Mr. Wright is 
1 pronounced Republican, and since attain- 
ing his majority has never failed to cast a 
ballot in behalf of his party at any election. 
He has frequently represented his township 
ind county in conventions. During his in- 
:urnbencv he took great interest in educa- 
tional matters, especially in beautifying 
school property; be erected several fine 
juildings and added to the attractiveness of 
ill schoolhouses within his jurisdiction. On 
iccount of his own limited intellectual ad- 
vantages in youth, he has always taken a 
lively interest in educational matters and 
.tses his influence to advance the standard of 
irofessional excellence among the teachers 
jf the township in which he lives. 

Mr. Wright has a beautiful and attra. 1 
.ve home, ever) feature of which indicates 
the presence of contentment and thrift. 1 U 
believes in using the good things of this 
world and lias lived so as to gel from life 
the greatest amount of pleasure and profit 



possible. Among his neighbors he is high- 
ly regarded as a citizen and discharges every 
duty incumbent upon him with the object 
in view of promoting the general welfare of 
the community, materially and morally. 
Mrs. Wright was a zealous member of the 
United Brethren church. While not con- 
nected with any church organization Mr. 
Wright has profound respect for religion 
and is liberal in the support of the congre- 
gation with which his wife is identified. 
He exerts a wholesome influence in behalf 
of all moral reforms and movements which. 
promise to benefit humanity and speaks with 
111 1 uncertain meaning when the good of the 
c immunity is under consideration. 

The home of Air. and Mrs. Wright has 
been brightened by the presence of seven 
children, all of whom have left the family 
fireside and started in the world upon their 
own responsibility. Ella, the first born, 
married Eli Klinger, a well-known farmer of 
Harrison township; Lewis F. married Em- 
ma Orcut and lives in Colorado; Thomas 
X.. of Rochester. Indiana, married Ada 
Yager, of this county; Albert married Mat- 
tie Burt and is a liveryman at Etna Green; 
Myrtle is the wife of William Crayton and 
lives on a farm in the township of Harri- 
son; Harry lives in Tippecanoe township, 
this state, and is also married, his wife be- 
ing formerly Miss Elsie V. McCruen; 
Charles, the youngest of the family, is de- 
ceased. 



DAVID S. WELCH. 

David S. Welch, grain buyer and local 
agent of the Pennsylvania railroad at \t- 
is a gentleman of marked bus 



5'4 



COMI'nXl'IUM OF BIOGR.U'IIY. 



ability, qualified in every way for the im- 
portant position lu- occupies anil it is 
jusl that specific recognition lie accorded 
liini in the pages of 1 1 1 i — volume. Back to 
stanch old Irish and German stock <!■ 
trace his lineage and that in his character 

the sterling qualities that have 
marked the true types of those nationalities 
i- manifest when the more salient points of 
his life's history are considered. 

ndustry, invincible spirit ami unw 

prominent charac- 

cs, and these, with many other admir- 
able traits have naturally secured him a po- 
sition in the respect and esteem of hi- fel- 
low men and \\><\\ for him a commendable 
g in the business world. 
At what time in the past the ancestors 
of the American branch of the Welch family 
came t" America i- not known, but it i- sup- 

1 to have been at a period antedating 
the colonial struggle for independence. 
The) settled in Virginia, as did also the 
Groves family, from which the subji 
maternally descended. The Welches were 
planter- and some of them appear t" have 
ive-holders and firm believers 
in the right of man to use hi- fellow man as 
a menial ami an article of traffic. Vmong 

ijinal ancestors was 
i me Joseph Welch, who t<"'k issue with his 
relatives upon the matter of involuntarj ser- 
vitude. He early manifested a profound 
antagonism to slave-holding and when ar- 
riving at the year- of manhood determined 
t>> ii" longer live in a state cursed with the 
presence of this, to him. most nefarious in- 
stitution. Accordingly he left the familiar 

- of hi- native place and migrated to 

the free -oil of Ohio, where for a number 

i worked at cabinetmaking, which 



had formerly learned in Virginia, lie 
ntinued to follow hi- trade in the Buck- 
ite until his removal, in an early day. 
grange county. Indiana, where he en- 
tered a quarter-section of land in what is 
a the township of Bloomfield. On com- 
| to tin- i Welch turned his 

attention to agricultural pur-nit- and fol- 
lowed the -ante with good results until his 
retirement from active life, after which he 
took up hi- abode in the town of I 
where he -pent the remainder of his 
a therein [863. During the time 
on his farm he cleared and brought to a 
high state of tillage one hundred acn 
tine land and wa- considered one of the 
agriculturists of die community in 
which he lived. As a citizen he ranked with 
est men of his township and county and 
his influence was invariably exerted upon 
the right -ide of every moral question. Po- 
litically he wa- one of the leading !<■ 
licans of hi- neighborhood, ami a- a mem- 
l the Methodist Episcopal church he 
quiet, consistent church life. The 
maiden name of Mr-. Joseph Wei''' was 
Elizabeth l - so was pronounced 

in her allegiance to the Methodist church. 
li\ed consistently with her religious pi 
-ion and died tru-tin i s r in the merits of a 
Saviour whom she had so long and faith- 
fully Joseph and Elizabeth W 
were the parent- of -even children, V 
name- are a- follow-: John W .. Thomas 
E., Jacob, l\. S.. Mary and Lucy. 
D. S Welch, the direct subject of this 
review, wa- lx.rn in Madison county. Ohio, 
August 7. 1834. The advantages which 
come from a life in close touch with nature 
in all of it- varied phases were hi- ami un- 
til fifteen years old he -pent hi- time in the 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



5i5 



fields, performing such duties as usually fall 
to the lot of lads reared amid the peaceful 
lursuits of the farm. Meanwhile he spent 
ihree winter seasons in such schools as the 
.'ountry afforded and at the above age took 
ip carpenter}, which he followed until at- 
taining his majority. When a little past 
wenty-nne he engaged in the mercantile 
tusiness at .Lagrange in partnership with an 
ilder brother, going in debt for their stuck 
>f gi ods and trusting to the future to make 
jood the amount they assumed. The busi- 
less proved successful from the start and 
he firm continued for a period of sixteen 
ears, during which time the store became 
me 1 if the leading establishments of the kind 
n Lagrange. At the expiration of this 
leriod the subject severed his connection 
vith the business and with a capital of about 
ive thousand dollars came to Kosciusko 
:ounty, locating at Atwood, where he in- 
vested a portion of his means in a large stock 
if miscellaneous merchandise and again an- 
lounced himself a candidate for a share of 
lublic patronage. He opened his store at 
\t\vood in 1866 and continued to sell goo Is 
intil 1882. meantime purchasing a beauti- 
ul farm of seventy-five acres in Harrison 
ownship. besides making other fortunate 
nvestments. In connection with merchan- 
lising he began, some time prior to 1882, 
o bin and ship grain and ultimately dis- 
iosed of his stock and devoted his attention 
the latter business, which he has since car- 
led on with flattering success. 

Mr. Welch's well-known abilities in his 
arious lines of trade were early recognized 
y the management of the Pennsylvania rail- 
oad, who offered him the position of local 
gent. This he accepted and proved in 



every respect a most competent and popular 
agent, his relations with the company and 
with the public as well being of the most sat- 
isfactory character. He has discharged the 
duties of the position to the present time 
and no doubt can remain with the company 
as king as he sees fit to retain the place. 

Mr. Welch has built up an extensive and 
lucrative grain business, the amount of his 
yearly shipments comparing favorably with 
those of the largest buyers in this section of 
of the state. Kind and obliging in all of 
his dealings and possessing the faculty of 
winning friends, he has attracted the major 
part of the trade of a large area of territory' 
surrounding Atwood and numbers among 
his customers the best people of the country. 
By discriminating judgment, careful man- 
agement and judicious tact he has amassed 
an ample competence and enjoys the repu- 
tation of being one of the strong financhl 
men of the county of Kosciusko. 

Mr. Welch has a fine modern hi ime in 
the town of Atwood. which was presided 
over for some years by his estimable wife. 
whose maiden name was Sarah J. Hill. She 
was the daughter of E. and Hannah Hill, 
natives of Xew York, and lxire her husband 
five children, namely: Maggie E.. wife of 
Oscar Wallace, of Warsaw; Cora B., wife 
of Sherman A. Pyle, of Lagrange"; Fred ('.. 
wdio married Grace Phillips and lives in 
.Michigan; and Frank E.. who entered into 
the marriage relation with Miss Blanche 
Blue and at the present time is his father's 
associate in the grain business. 

The mother of these children was a lady 
of many excellent traits and for a number 
of years a pious and consistent member of 
the United Brethren church. After a happy 



5«6 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



and contented married life she was called 
to the- xtlicr world, her death occurring on 
the 6th day of January. 1902. 

Mr. Welch is ii"t identified with an) 
church, although he is a man of deep feeling 
ami lias pronounced views relative to re- 
ligious matters, lie i- a liberal supporter 
i>i" the congregation t" which his wife be- 

1. but his benefactions are by m 1 means 
confined to that society alone, as he \ 
with a tree hand to all enterprises by means 
"i which the mural and religious condition 
of the community may be benefited, lie was 
made a Mason when twenty-one years of 

md since that time has been an active 
worker in the fraternity, belonging at pres- 
ent t>> tin p ■ - ;>\ . He has tilled 
all the principal official positions in the 
lodge, from master down, and i- - .' 
leading member of the chapter meeting in 
the above city. 

Mr. Welch believe- that all good citizens 
should take an active interest in politics, 
a- the government of our country depends 
upon the elective franchise. lli> reading 
and investigation, a- well as his natural in- 
clination-, early led him to espouse the prin- 

- "f the Republican party and fr>>m the 

1 twenty-one to the present time he has 
Ken .in ardent supporter of the party to 
which he belongs. During campaigns he is 
an active worker ami not infrequently has 
hi- advice been sought and 
followed in some of the most stirring 

in the history of the county. He has 
■ m an office seeker, hut in t8f 

E many friends, his name 

permitted to ^.. before the convention 
for nomination a.- county treasurer. Other 
competitors with following bei 

the I 'iv e the honor, hut 



this in no wise lessened his ardor in behalf 
of the successful candidate in the ensuing 
campaign. 

Few citizens of Kosciusko county are 
more widely known or more highly esteemed 
than the honored subject of this -ketch, lie 

- been successful in business, respe 
in social life and a- a neighbor ha- dis- 
charged his duty in a manner becoming 
liberal-minded, intelligent citizen of the -tate 
where the essential qualities of manhood are 
duly recognized and prized at their true 
value. He has figured prominently in the 
public >f hi- township and county 

and the position he today occupies a- a po- 
tential factor in the community has 
well and nobly earned. 



JAMES K. SMITH. 



For a number of year- the subject of 

this review enjoyed much more than 
repute a- an educator, but since 1898 he has 

ted hi- entire time and attention to mer- 
cantile pursuit-. lie i- "in- "f the widely 
known young men of Kosciusko county, of 
which he i- a native, and ev <. early 

manhood has contributed much to the ma- 
terial development and intellectual growth 
of the different communities in which his lot 
was cast. The branch of the Smith family 
of which the subject is an honorable repre- 
sentative wa- known from very early times 
in Pennsylvania, in which -t grand- 

father was horn and reared. Tin- an 
later moved t" Fulton county. Ohio, where 

Family lived until about the year 1855, 
at which time they came to Kos< iusko coun- 
ty and -ettled in the township of Harrison. 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



517 



Henry T. Smith, father of James E., was a 
young man when his parents moved to this 
county. He grew to maturity on the home 
farm in Harrison township and in 1862 was 
united in marriage with Miss Elizabeth 
Ames, whose parents were among the 
earliest settlers of Kosciusko county, their 
arrival antedating the year [836. Mr. 
Ames became a large land owner and influ- 
ential citizen and to him as much as to any 
one man was Harrison township indebted 
for much of its earlier growth and pros- 
perity. Some years after his deatli his 
widow married Air. Smith, the subject's 
grandfather, and she is still living at an ad- 
vanced age. 

Some time after his marriage Henry T. 
Smith took up his residence in the town of 
Bourbon, Marshall county, where he en- 
gaged in the manufacture of lumber. He 
was an honest, hard-working man and he 
continued to reside in the above town until 
the death of his wife, which occurred No- 
vember 1, 1878. She bore him four chil- 
dren: Mary J., wife of Frank Day, a busi- 
ness man of Chicago; James E., of this re- 
view : Cora E., who married Elias Hart, a 
farmer of North Dakota; and .Minnie L., 
wife of Prof. L. D. Vaughn, a teacher of 
Prairie township. living in Atwood, 

James E. Smith was born in Harrison 
township. Kosciusko county, on the 21st day 
of August, 1865. Until his fourteenth year 
he lived with his parents in the town of 
Bourbon and at the proper age entered the 
public schools, which he attended at that 
place until the death of his mother. De- 
pined of the love and tender solicitude 
which only a mother knows, and that, too, 
at aii age when a boy most needs her wis- 
dom ami guidance, young Smith was thrown 



upon his own resources and compelled to 
carve out, unaided, his destiny in a cold and 
uncharitable world. 

The year following the breaking up of 
his home ties he worked for his board and 
clothing and such was the efficient service 
he rendered that the year following he was 
hired by a fanner at seven dollars per m< null. 
While thus engaged, he attended of winter 
seasons the public schools and realizing the 
value of education, not only as a means of 
intellectual development but also as a potent 
factor in aiding its possessor to surmount 
unfavorable environments and make his way 
through life successfully, he prosecuted his 
studies with zealous earnestness and soon 
outstripped the majority of his classmates. 
While attending the district schools he did 
chores for his board and by carefully hus- 
banding his earnings the rest of the year 
laid by in due time sufficient means to en- 
able him to attend a term at the Northern 
Indiana Normal College at Valparaiso. Mr. 
Smith entered that well known and popular 
institution in the fall of 1883 and by dili- 
gent application made such headway in his 
various studies that the following year he 
successfully passed an examination and ob- 
tained a teacher's license. He taught his 
first term in district No. 9. Prairie township, 
in the winter of 1884-5. ani ' tne following 
fall was graduated from the commercial de- 
partment of the Valparaiso Normal College 
with a creditable record. 

Mr. Smith brought to his school work a 
mind well disciplined by close and critical 
study and from the beginning of his career 
as an educator his success was assured. 
While a student in college he paid especial 
attention to the art of imparting instruction 
and his methods of teaching, as well as his 



5.8 



COMPENDIUM OJ : BIOGRAPHY. 



tact in governing, at once made him pop- 
ular with pupils and patrons. Hi- second 
term was also taught in the township of 
Prairie, and he continued educational work 
in that part of the county until [898, with 
the exception of the winter of 1885 and 
1886, when he taught a term in Etna town- 
ship. 

In October, [886, Mr. Smith and Miss 
Delia Hillery were made husband and wife; 
latter was 1m. rn in Prairie township. 
This union was severed by the death 
Mr-. Smith, who answered the summons to 
the other life on the 30th day of May, l8J 
leaving one child. Merlin < )., whose birth 
occurred September 6, [887. He is an ex- 
ceeding!) bright and affable lad, devoti 
his studies and gives promise of future use- 
fulness, lie was graduated from the com- 
mon schools in 1901 and is now a student 

^i the \tw 1 high school, where he hi 

ready made an honorable record both in his 
studies and general deportment. Mr. 
Smith'-- second marriage was solemnized 
with Mi-- Elizabeth Huffer, daughter of 
.■ : Huffer, a native of Pennsylvania and 
one of the enterprising farmer- of \- 
usko county: this union has been blessed 
with three children, one of whom is de- 
ed; the other two are Rex Edwin, born 
Decembei 28, 1898, and Ruby !'•.. whose 
birth occurred August 18, [901. 

In the summer of 1893 Mr. Smith 
I., ught a half interest in a hardware -ton 

\tw 1 and during the five years fol 

lowing -old g Is in connection with teach- 

devoting the winter seasons to the lat- 
ter occupation ami the other mouth- to mer- 
chandising. In 1898 he purchased his part- 
ner'- interest in the business and has since 
sole proprietor, being now in the en- 



joyment of a large and lucrative trade which 
is continually incn in volume. His 

success 111 the mercantile line ha- more than 
met his expectations. He has a large and 
carefully -elected -t' >ck and by always kecp- 
; hand every article in the hardware 
nd carefully attending to the wants 
of his customers, he ha- established his busi- 
- and the future out- 
look i- m every way bright and encot 
ing. 

When Mr. Smith was tir-t married 
prospects were any thing hut brilliant. Ik- 
had no means worth mentioning and it re- 
quired all of his salary a- a teacher to main- 
tain his humble dome-tic establishment an 1 
keep hunger from the door. By the cl< 
kind of economy he succeeded in laying aside 
a -mall amount, sufficient to make a pay- 
ment on the hardware interest which he pur- 
chased, and from that time on a better era 
began to dawn. Since obtaining entire con- 
trol of the business he ha- forged rapidly 
to the front until he is now worth in excess 
of tive thousand dollars, all of which has 
come to him within the last three or four 
years. Not the least of the factor- which 
have contributed to hi- success are hi- genial 
manners and de-ire to please. Kind and 
affable to all. he possesses the tact to win 
friend- ami hi- place of business i- well 
known to the farming community adjacent 
to the town, his customers being among the 
best and most reliable men of the village and 
surrounding country. 

Not only as a teacher and business man 
has Mr. Smith won a respectable standing 

in the community, hut as a public-spirited 
citizen, interested in general improvements 
and matters political, he has also become 
widely and favorably known. \- a Repub- 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



5i9 



lican he has wielded a potential influence in 
his township, which he now represents on 
the county central committee, and in the 
management of campaigns his services have 
contributed much to the success of his party 
at the polls. He is a charter member of 
Lodge No. 326, K. of P., of which he was 
the first chancellor commander, and was 
honored by being chosen its first representa- 
tive to the grand lodge. 

Much of the success which has recently 
crowned Mr. Smith's efforts is due to his 
estimable wife, who has proven herself not 
only a companion but a helpmate in the 
widest sense of the term. She is a well ed- 
ucated lady, deeply interested in religious 
and charitable work, and as a zealous mem- 
ber -of the United Brethren church of At- 
wood has endeared herself to the corramu- 
nity by her beautiful Christian benevolence, 
as well as her activity in the cause of re- 
ligion. After completing the common 
school course she took full courses in busi- 
ness and stenography and for several years 
enjoyed the distinction of being one of the 
most successful teachers in the Kosciusko 
county public schools. Mr. Smith is also 
identified with the United Brethren denom- 
ination and for several years past has been 
zealous in the Sum lay school work, serving 
as superintendent, and at the present time is 
teacher of one of the largest and most in- 
telligenl classes of any Bible school in the 
ti >w 11. 

Briefly and as succinctly as possible have 
been recorded in the foregoing lines the 
leading tacts in the life of a very active anil 
successful man, and it remains for a future 
writer t" prepare a more complete and ap- 
pn ipriate biography. 



WILLIAM VV. McKINLEY. 

In a quiet cemetery near the thriving 
city of South Bend. Indiana, may be seen 
an old grave of an unusually large size, at 
the head of which stands a modest stone 
containing a simple epitaph to the memory 
of James and Mary McKinley. These were 
the grandparents on the paternal side of 
the subject of this sketch, also of the late 
William McKinley. one of America's most 
distinguished statesmen and the beloved 
president of the United States, whose recent 
tragic death at the hand of a cowardly as- 
sassin caused sorrow in every loyal Amer- 
ican home and awakened the profound sym- 
pathy of the civilized world. The name 
McKinley is destined to occupy an honored 
place in American history as long as time 
endures. It will remain forever a monu- 
ment of the grand possibilities which may 
be realized under the benign influence of our 
free institutions and will continue in the 
future, as it has been in the past, a stimulus 
to nobler deeds and greater activities on the 
part of a young man of intelligence and en- 
ergy upon whom fortune casts no benignant 
smiles. 

Paternally the McKinley family is de- 
scended from sturdy Scotch- Irish ancestry, 
the antecedents of the American branch 
coming to this country in an early day from 
the Emerald Isle. In a quiet rural bury- 
ing ground in that beautiful, romantic and 
historic sea-girt land, sleeping the sleep that 
knows no waking on the side of the valley 
of shadows, iie the bodies of many of the 
McKinley family, some of whose graves 
are marked by appropriate epitaphs, while 
others rest beneath unknown sod which time 



520 



COMl'llxniUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



for untold years has clothed with recurring 
vestures i »f living green. 

Mr. James McKinley, above referred to, 
was born in Mercer county, Pennsylvania, 
September 19, [783, married Mary Rose on 
the -'Dili day of August, 1804, and in an 
early day moved t" eastern <>hi'>. Subse- 
quently he came to Indiana and located near 
Si mtli Bend, where he spent the remainder 
<>f hi- hie. A remarkable coincide™ 
connection with the death of this sturdy 
couple is the fad that both were called aw a; 
mi the forty-third anniversary of their mar- 
August 20, t S4 7 . and their lx. dies 
were buried in the same grave. At the time 
of his deatli James McKinley was aged six- 
ty-three years, eleven months and one day, 
and his wife's age was fifty-eight year-, 
nine months and five days when she ex- 
changed the earthly life for immortality. 
Among the children of James and Mary Mc- 
Kinley v u by the name of John, 
whose birth occurred either in Mercer coun- 
ty, Pennsylvania, or in eastern Ohio. He 
married in the latter state Mi-- Eliza J. 
Boyle and became the father of eleven chil- 
dren, whose nam. - follows: James, 
Benjamin 11.. Alexander II.. Mary. John 
W.. Lucius P... William \\\. Sarah E., Ira 
and Henry M.. seven of whom are li\ • 
the present time. 

John McKinley remained in eastern 
Ohio until 1855. at which time he disposed 
of his interests there and came to Indiana, 
locating "ii a farm near Mnncie. Delaware 
county, where for a few year- he followed 
ultural pursuits. When :. young man 
he prepared himself for the Methodist min- 
istry and some time after coming to Indi- 
ana lie entered upon the active dutii 
the holy office by taking charge of a circuit 



containing several churches in Delaware and 
other counties in the west central |»art of 
tiie state. He continued as an itinerant a 
number of year- ami at one time served as 
presiding elder of hi- district. His reputa- 
tion a- an earnest, eloquent preacher of the 
gospel became widely known and the various 
churches over which he exercised pastoral 
control grew in numbers and influence, thus 
causing hi- services to he in great demand 
at the meeting of the conference when cir- 
cuit- and charges were apportioned among 
the various ministers. In the higher and 

responsible position of presiding 1 
he was equally energetic and displayed tine 
executive abilities in the management of the 
district in his charge. John McKinley lived 
a useful life unselfishly devoted to the serv- 
ice of 1 lod m saving men. and in the church 
triumphant he no doubt wears many jewels 
in his crown of rejoicing by reason of the 
number of souls brought into the 
Kingdom through his earnest efforts 
able minister of the Word. He departed 
this life at Mnncie in 1896; hi- wife pre- 
ceded him to the other world by live 
dying in the year 1891. 

William W. McKinley. whose name 
pear- at the head of this article, is th. 
enth child of John and Eliza McKinle 
wa- horn in the town of \ile-. Trumbull 
county. Ohio, August 20, 1850. He was 
five years old when brought to Indiana. 
from which lime until nineteen he remained 
with hi- parents and assisted with the varied 
duties of the farm in Delaware county. In 
hi- twentieth year he left the Home fireside 
and went to Missouri, in which state lie 
worked at any honorable employment he 
could find until 1873, when he returned 
home and made arrangements to improve 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



521 



lis education, which unfortunately had been 
greatly neglected during his childhood and 
youthful years. With the exception of a 
few broken terms in the district schools he 
•ad received little intellectual training, and, 
•ealizing the need of greater knowledge than 
le then possessed and appreciating the ad- 
vantages which education would bring to 
1:111, he determined to subordinate every 
)ther consideration to the one great end id 
jecoming a scholar. 

Having perfected his plans. Air. McKin- 
ey in 1881 entered the Northern Indiana 
Normal University at Valparaiso, taking a 
select course of studying with the two-fold 
jbject in view of enlarging his intellectual 
lorizon and preparing himself for the pro- 
fession of teaching. Applying himself as- 
siduously to his studies, he labored zealous- 
y until completing the prescribed course, 
ifter which he received a high-grade license, 
enabling him to teach in the public schools 
:>f Kosciusko county. He taught his first 
term at the town of Oswego and there dem- 
anstrated much more than average abilit) 
is an instructor and disciplinarian. Meet- 
ing with success and encouragement in 
lis first attempt, he was encouraged to con- 
tinue the work and for a period of ten con- 
secutive years he taught at various places in 
the county and earned an enviable reputa- 
tion as a scholarly and skillful educator. 

While engaged in educational work Mr. 
McKinlev always carried first-class licenses 
and never permitted himself to fall behind 
in any matters of progressive pedagogy. By 
diligent application, he kept himself full. 
abreast the age both in scholarship and 
method, was an active participant in the de- 
liberations of institutes and teachers' asso 
nations, m which he exercised a decided in- 



fluence upon the public-school system of 
Kosciusko count}-. For- several years he 
taught common district schools, but as his 
name and reputation became more widely 
recognized he was chosen (principal of a 
number of graded schools, notably among 
which were those in the towns of Burket 
and Atwood. He also had charge of three 
normal institutions at Atwood and Warsaw 
respectively, and as an instructor of teach- 
ers fully sustained the reputation he had 
formerly won in the subordinate positions. 

Unfortunately for Air. McKinlev. he be- 
came afflicted with rheumatism and that, 
too. in such an aggravated form as seriously 
to interfere with his efficiency in the school 
room. This dreaded ailment continued to 
increase in violence until at length, from 
the age of twenty years, he was compelled 
to use crutches to aid his locomotion, and. 
although partially recovered, he still suf- 
fers greatly at times and is now in a sadly 
crippled condition. By reason of this in- 
firmity, together with the demands of his 
private business affairs, he retired perma- 
nently from school work in 1890 and has 
since devoted his attention to merchan- 
dising. 

On the 4th day of November, [886, was 
solemnized the marriage of William W. 
McKinlev and Miss Lauretta Hayhurst, 
daughter of Bazeleel Hayhurst. Mrs. Mc- 
Kinley's parents were natives of Pennsyl- 
vania and of Irish-English lineage. They 
came to Kosciusko count)' in pioneer times 
and settled in Harrison township, where the 
father entered land and afterwards became 
a successful fanner, lie was also a well- 
known citizen and after a long and useful 
life died on the place which he originally 
purchased from the government. 



5 - 2 



couriixinuu of biography. 



Mr. and Mrs. McKinley's happy mar- 
ried life has been blessed with one child, 
Trella '/... who was born April 28, [888. 
Sin- is a bright miss of fourteen in whom 
her parent- have centered man-, fond hopes, 
ami at this time is pursuing her studies in 
the schools "i ^twood. Mr. and Mr-. Mc- 
kinley began housekeeping in the above 
town, which they have since made their 
home. While teaching in [890, the subject 
bought an interest in a small mercantile busi- 
ness in Atwood and at the expiration of his 
•term that year purchased the entire stock 
and became the sole proprietor. lie soon 
added to the stock and the business, under 
his efficient management, has continued to 
increase until he now has one of the best 
arranged and most extensivelj patronized 
of the kind in the town. By care- 
fully studying the tastes of his customers 
and catering to the demands of the trade his 
business grew to such proportions as to ren- 
der necessary a room of greatly enlarged 
capacity S cordingly, in 1895, ne erected 
his present building, a neat and substantial 
structure which answers well the purpose 

which intended ; he aNo built a residence 
four years later and is now well situated. 
both from business and domestic points 
view. 

\s > well known by all who have given 
the matter itleuti. in 

the hardest worked and | rest paid of any 

air public servants fact patent 

to all that more is required of him than from 
the individual in an) other of the learned 
Few educators are noted 
wealth and if perchanci her 

. and then he found well situated it may 
anted that his means ]i 
iv, . .1 room. Afl 



spending ten of the best \ears of his hfe in 
this noble and elevating work. Mr. McKiu- 
ley found himself the possessor of means 
barely sufficient to meet current expe 
To better his condition financially was one 
of the prime reas, .ns that induced him to 
retire from the profession and turn his at- 
tention to a vocation which promised more 
libera] returns and less consecutive toil. 
Since engaging solely in merchandising he 
has met with encouraging success and is 
now the p ssi-ss, , r of a handsome property 
and a competence running well up into the 
thousands, every dollar of which has come 
to him as the result of carefully laid plans, 
mature judgment and skillful management 
It is not too much to claim for Mr. Mc- 
Kinlev intellectual culture and general in- 
formation far in excess of the average man. 
With a mind well disciplined by sch< 
and professional training and many \ears 
• ■f contad with the young as a teacher, he 
lecome widely informed on many sub- 
lle is a careful reader of the world's 
lest literature, a close student of current 
events, and his know led g< 

mong hi- fellow citizens as one of the 
most scholarly and best jw -ste-d men in the 
community. Such a man would naturally 
take much more than a passing interest in 
political, economic and kindred subjects and 
this the subject has done for a nuinl» 
years. Well acquainted with the 1 
parties, his inclinations and reading early 
led him to look upon the Democratic party 
ty of tin- nd a- eml* >d\ ing 

<s i .ntati\e government. 

When old enough to < t of 

m franc' his allegiani 

that party and has been one of its ardent 
supporters ever since. At one time hi- n 






COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



523 



eaded the ticket as candidate for repre- 
entative to the general assembly, but the 
otmty being strongly Republican he went 
own in the general defeat, although rim- 
ing far ahead of the other candidates of 
is party. 

Mr. McKinley is a man of independent 
lind, strong in his convictions, and gives 
ree expression to his opinions when called 
ut in discussion. He has never tried t: > 
ain any prestige by reason of his close re- 
itionship to our late distinguished Presi- 
ent, believing the motto, "What I am, not 
hat my relations are." to contain the true 
hilosophy of life; while proud of his an- 
?strv and of the prominence which the 
ord McKinley has gained in history, his 
rm convictions are that every man should 
;Iy upon his own efforts and carve out his 
\vn fortune and destiny. 

Mr. McKinley is prominent in Odd Fel- 
nvship. having passed all the chairs in 
,odge Xm. 493, of which he is a member. 
esides representing it in the grand lodge 
prm two occasions. He has a profound and 
:verent regard for sacred things and be- 
eves the visible church to be the most 
otent factor for revolutionizing the world 
jr good and winning man to the highest 
fe. His membership with the United 
irethren denomination dates back many 
ears, and since becoming a resident of At- 
ood he has been one of the leaders of the 
>cal congregation. For several years he 
;rved as class leader and as a Sunday 
:hool worker and official, and lias done ef- 
L-ctive service in advancing the moral and 
sligious status of the community. Mrs. 
IcKinley is also an active church member, 
live to all the good work of the congrega 
on and its various societies, and with her 

32 



husband is highly esteemed by all with 
whom she is acquainted. Thus briefly and 
perhaps imperfectly have been set forth the 
salient facts and prominent characteristics 
in the life and character of one of Kosci- 
usko county's intelligent men and public 
benefactors. Honored by all who km >w 
him for his useful and blameless life, high- 
ly regarded as a citizen, it is eminently fit- 
ting in closing this sketch to compliment him 
by saying that the community in which he 
lives lias never known a better type of in- 
telligent, scholarly, courteous. Christian 
gentleman. 

Mr. and Mrs. McKinley have in their 
possession a couple of interesting and val- 
uable relics. One is an old parchment deed, 
bearing the date of June 25, 1841, and 
signed by President John Tyler, and which 
hears title to one hundred and sixty acres 
of land. The other relic is an emery ball, 
which is covered with an embroiderv of knit 
cloth, in which is worked the date of its 
making, 1783. 



JOHN W. ANGLIN. 

Few indeed are the residents of Kosci- 
usko county whose identification therewith 
dates from 1837. For sixty-seven years 
John W. Anglin has made bis home in Prai- 
rie township, one of the honored citizens and 
substantial men of the community. He was 
born in Barbour county, Virginia, Septem- 
ber 12. 1835. and is the son of James and 
Matilda (Hall) Anglin. both parents na- 
tives of that state and of Scotch-Irish or- 
igin. James Anglin was a fanner by oc- 
cupation. In [837 lie sold his place in Vir- 
ginia atnl came to. Kosciusko countv, Indi- 



5-4 



COMl'ESDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



ana, entering a large tract of land in Prairie 
township and also purchasing considerable 
real estate in the county of Mar-hall. Hi- 
place ni Prairie township was unimproved 
at the tunc he t< " >k possessii >n and he ei 

little log cabin of the o »n\ enl 
in life in a true pioneer style. 
In due time Ik- cleared a number "t' 
which were broken by oxen, a- he « 1 i * I nut 
own horses until some year- after his 
rival, lie became a very successful fanner 
and acquired ample mean-, the greater part 
<>f hi- fortune consisting of teal estate, 
which increased rapidly in value with the 
growth and development of the country. 
He was one of the leading and influential 
men of his neighborhood, took an active 
part in advancing the material interests of 
his township ami county and departed this 
life in 1^74. highly esteemed bj a 
cle of friends who had learned to prize him 
for hi- sterling qualities and exemplary 
Christian character. Mr-. Matilda Anglin 
preceded her husband to the grave in [857 
and - ntly he married another lady, 

Man Scott, who is still living. Mr. Ang- 
lin's I ' resulted in nine children, 

namely: David II.. Harvey M.. John \\ '.. 
Mary, James F., Samuel IX. Elizabeth, Adi- 
son and Hiram. Of these four were horn 
in Vi nd five in Kosciusko county, 

Indiana. The second marriage was blessed 
with dren, nearly all of whom grew 

f maturity. 
When three years old John \\ . \i . 

by his parents to Kosciusko 
count) and his early experiences w< 

die pioneer period in which he 
grew I. For several years his 

onlv playfellows aside from his brothers 

Indian children that lived near bv. 



between whom and their white companions 
warm and friendly fa sprang up. 

roamed the wood- together, took part 
in mimic hunt-, tested their markmanship 
with how- and arrows and in many 
ways passed the time very pleasantl) a- long 
as the red man remained in the country. 
Young Anglin early became proficient in the 
use of tin- ax. and when a lad of fifteen 
made a hand at any kind of work with that 
implement. He became one of the most 
skillful choppers in his neighborhood and 
seemed never to tire while cutting cord 
wood, making rail-, clearing land or doing 
any kind of work requiring strength of 
muscle and earnestness of purpose. 

Mr. Anglin's only educational privih 

such a- die subscription school, taught 

in a little round-log cabin, afforded; he 

seems to have distanced his classmates in his 

Studies, however, for a- early a- 1853 lie 

selected to teach a term near hi- father's 

and from what can now he learned his 

school \ success, measured by the 

standard of excellence a- then recognized. 

He continued to live at home, assisting with 

arm work, until about twentj 
age, when he turned hi- attention to carpen- 
tering, in which he early displayed unusual 
efficiency and which he followed with suc- 
and profit until 1882. 

Meanwhile Mr. Anglin became inter- 
ested in farming ami some time in the 1 
'sixties came into possession of a place in 
Prairie township which hi nee made 

his home. He purchased additional land 
from tim< e until his place com; 

two hundred and eighty-tl it- pres- 

ent area, and at a verj conservative estimate 
it now represents a value of at least fifteen 
thousand doll 



'COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



525 



Air. Anglin was married March 29, 
1865, tn .Miss Mary E. Conk, whose birth 
xxurred on the 18th day of December, 
1844. Her parents, George W. and Mercy 
3. (Redrow) Cook, were natives of Xew 
fersey, but early came to Indiana and set- 
ied in Randolph count}-, thence later moved 
the county of Kosciusko, where they were 
iving when the marriage of their daughter 
00k place. After their marriag-e Mr. and 
drs. Anglin moved to their present place 
>f abode in Prairie township and now have 
. beautiful home, every appearance of which 
lespeaks a spirit of thrift, happiness and 
ontent. They have the following children : 
^aura B.. born September 4, 1867; Arthur 
.. born January 1, 1872, married Emma 
V. Crabbe and is also a resident of Prai- 
ie; George W., horn October 7, 1874, is 
iow a student in the medical department 
if the Chicago University; Blanche B., born 
Utgust 15. 1877. married Harvey E. Crabbe 
nd died at Buffalo, Xew York. June 13, 
901: Homer I'.., who was born June 12, 
879, is a single man and lives on the home 
arm, which he manages. 

In his political affiliations Mr. Anglin 
5 a Democrat, but he has never been a very 
ctive participant in party affairs. In mat- 
ers of business he has always been char- 
cterized by sound judgment and the ample 
rieans which are now his are the result of 
he exercise of those correct principles which 
/hen properly directed invariably win suc- 
ess. As a citizen he has discharged every 
uty in a most exemplary and praiseworthy 
tanner and as a neighbor and friend none 
tand higher in the confidence and esteem of 
he community. Religiously he is a Meth- 
xlist. and his wife also belongs to that 
hurch. both being very active in the good 



work of their congregation, especially in 
the Sunday school, where their services have 
long been of great value. 

Since the year 1882 Mr. Anglin has de- 
voted his attention principally to looking 
after his agricultural interests and selling 
farm machinery, his success in the latter be- 
ing very gati tying. He has been a mem- 
ber of the State Horse Thief Association 
for about thirty years, during which time 
he has been instrumental in bringing in 
large number of law breakers to justice and 
securing for several of them long sentences 
in the state prison. Mr. and Mrs. Anglin 
are among the oldest and must highly es- 
teemed people of Prairie township and by 
reason of long residence their names have 
become widely known throughout the coun- 
ty. All who know them speak in high praise 
of their many estimable qualities and the 
general wish is that they may be spared 
many years to the community in which they 
have lived so long and so well. 

As being of interest to the readers of this 
volume, the following newspaper extract re- 
ferring to the subject's daughter, Blanche 
]'., is here reprinted: 

Blanche Bernice Crabbe, daughter of John W. anil 
Mary E. Anglin, was born at Clunelte, Knsciusko 
county. Indiana, August 15, 18'iT. ami died at her 
home in Buffalo, New York, June 13, 1901. On the 
'2'2nd of September, 1897, she was united in marriage 
to Harvey E. Crabbe, also of Clunette, and who had 
been her friend and ardent admirer from earliest 
childhood. This union proved to be a peculiarly hap- 
py one, and while of a short duration was character- 
ized by extraordinary devotion and felicity, the attach- 
ment being beautifully reciprocal. 

Sister Crabbe united with the Methodist Episcopal 
church in Clunette when about sixteen years of age, 
and retained htr membership in the home church till 
after her marriage and removal in Buffalo in l v 97, at 
which time she identified herself with the Linwood 
Avenue Methodist Episcopal church of that city, of 
which churcii she remained a faithful member till [he 



526 



COMI'E.xnilU OF BhKiKAI'IlY 



day of her .leath and translation to "the church of the 
she was the recipient of a very 
marked religious experience during a revival mi 
conducted by the Eva W. Ruth, in the win- 

ter ot ltw, and the influence of that meeting remained 
with her to the end. Her Biblewas her constant com- 
panion and her trusted guide. The prayer-meeting 
was her delight, and her earnest prayers and inspiiing 
will long be remembered by her fellow- 
worshipers. Her pleasant smile, her kind words and 
her winsome w.i>- made her a great favorite, attracting 

all and repelling none. She had remarkable - 

powers, and made her life a blessing lo the sick, the 

aged, the i r and the stranger. Her life was one of 

unusual gentleness and sweetness. She suffered much 
for several years, and her last illness was prolonged 
and painful, yet no murmur escaped her lips. Like 
l„ T m her favorite 

es being: "He was oppressed, and He was 
afflicted, yet He opened not His mouth.' Another: 
"Fori reckon that the sufferings ot this present time 

.ire not worthy to he compared with tin- glory which 

shall hi- revealed to us." she has passed through suf- 
fering to glory, and will he found among that while- 
robed throng "winch came out ot u're.it tribulation, 
and have washed their robes, and made them white 
in the blood of the Lamb." 

[Tie funeral was attended from the home in Buf- 
falo, also from her former home and birthplao 
the little church in Clunelte where she gave her heart 
to Christ, ami which sin had loved from her cbild- 
hood "lays. I'h' in both places were con- 

I by her pastor, Rev. frank H. VanKeuren, of 

Buffalo. New York, assisted at Clunelte b) the pastor, 

Mr. Fetro, also by Rev. Mr. Farmer, pas 
the United Brethren church in the same place. The 
interment was at Leesburg, Indiana, four mill 
t.mi. She is survived bj .1 husband, father, mother, 

sister and three brothers, .ill of whom feel verj 

ly ii,. js whii b thi istained. 



MARSHALL MAKEMSON. 

The best title "iic can establish to the 
.nnl generous esteem >>i an intelligent 
communit) is a protracted ami honorable 
therein. Mr. Makemson, of this 
v. has been a lifelong resident "t' Kos- 
ciusko county ami by his genealogy repre- 



sents two 'ilil ami well known families, "tic 
of Irish descent and the other of German 
1 rigin. The subject's paternal grandfather; 
a native of the beautiful ami romantic 

Emerald Isle, came t<> the United Stati 
an early day and settled in Ohio. Among 
In- sons was John Makemson, who grew to 
maturity in the Buckeye state and about the 
year 1834 Or [835 came t'. Kosciusko coun- 
ty. Indiana, and purchased a quarter-section 
of land in what i- now the township of 
Washington. He was a true type of the 
■ gged, iron-willed pioneer of that period, 
and it is a matter of family history that the 
hill ot fare of his first meal in Kosciusko 
county consisted of corn |*>ne and raccoon 
rlesh. He was a man of well-defined pur- 
iiid never failed to carry to successful 
completion any work or enterprise to which 
he addressed himself. Beginning life in a 
new country and under many unfavorable 
auspices, he let nothing deter him and be- 
fore '.he lapse of many years he had a tine 
farm under cultivation, besides owning 
much of the land adjoining hi- original pur- 
chase. 

John Makemson was much more than 
an ordinary man — indeed one of his mental 
make-up and characteristics is a- one to a 
'thousand. By successful real estate trans- 
actions he made money very rapidly and in 
the course of years his holdings amounted 
er two thousand acre- of a- tine laud 
a- Kosciusko county contained. In addition 
to fanning and dealing in real estate, he 
largely interested in live stock. He 
purchased cattle all over this and surround- 
ing counties, pastured them until the mar- 
ket was favorable and then shipped to the 

ern cities, where he never failed to re- 
eral price-. \- ■ '■ dealer in and 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



527 



f cattle lie long - enjoyed the reputation of 
oing" the largest and most successful busi- 
ess of the kind in northern Indiana, and 
1 an early day he also amassed large 
,-ealth from the sale of nursery stock, his 
ursery being- the largest and must success- 
Lil at that time in Indiana north of In- 
ianapolis. Every enterprise to which he 
evoted his energies prospered and at one 
me he enjoyed the distinction of being not 
nly the most active business man in Kos- 
iusko county, but also the wealthiest. 

John Makemson established a reputa- 
1 m for industry, honesty, integrity, pru- 
ence and judgment such as few men attain, 
le always possessed energy, resolution, de- 
jrmination and in early life acted according 
the motto, "1 will find a way or make 
ne." His good common sense, caution, 
oresight and accurate powers of observa- 
ion, together with the traits above named 
nd others of equal importance, enabled him 
:i overcome every obstacle and establish a 
areer highly successful in all of its parts. 
le accumulated wealth simply as the result 
f growth and exercise of the qualities en- 
imerated, and dealt with his fellow men in 
he high' and honorable way that never fail-; 
win esteem and regard. 

Mr. Makemson was a pious man and 
iriginally an active member of the Seventh 
)ay Baptist church. Later in life he became 
. Methodist and so continued to the end of 
lis days. Politically he was a Whig and 
ater a Republican. He took an active in- 
erest in public affairs and at one time was 
■lected treasurer of Kosciusko county, the 
luties of which he discharged in a manner 
satisfactory to the people regardless of poli- 
ics. He was twice married, the first time. 
while living in Ohio, to Ariel Davis, a union 



which resulted in the birth of six sons and 
three daughters. Subsequently he entered 
into the marriage relation with Sarah 
Bright, who bore him four children. .Mr. 
Makemson's private character was without a 
stain and his name is associated with no 
questionable transactions. He is kindly and 
affectionately remembered by his kindred, 
friends and acquaintances as a man of gen- 
erous and noble impulses, for his many acts 
of kindness and beneficence and for all the 
noble qualities of intelligence and enterpris- 
ing citizenship. He had the Christian's love 

j for his fellow men, used his large means lib- 
erally for the extension of religious and 
charitable objects and his name and fame are 

j destined to lie long remembered in the an- 
nals of northern Indiana, especially in the 
history of the county for the material ad- 
vancement of which he gave his best years 
and energies. 

Marshall Makemson was born in Wash- 
ington township, Kosciusko county, July 3. 
1845, ail( l ' s a son ot " J°bn and Ariel Mak- 
emson. He remained at home, working on 
the farm until his twenty-third year, mean- 
while during his 'teens attending - the com- 
mon schools and obtaining a limited educa- 
tion. When a youth of seventeen he en- 
listed in Company D. One Hundred and 
Fifty-second Indiana Infantry, entering the 
service February 9, 1865, and receiving his 
discharge the following August. Returning 
home he determined to acquire a better edu- 
cation, accordingly he entered the graded 
schools of Pierceton, where he took up the 
higher branches, and subsequently became a 
student of the Northern Indiana Normal 
University at Valparaiso. After pursuing 
his studies for a considerable length of time 
and making substantial progress, he re- 



528 



COMPEXDIL'M OF BIOGRAPHY 



turned home and resumed agricultural pur- 
suits "ii his father's farm, continuing the 
same until his marriage on the [6th of Jan- 
uary, i868, i" Miss llettie Roe, who bore 
him four children, viz: Renna. ( )ra A., 
Flosie, deceased, and Carl M.. deceased. His 
second marriage, which was solemnized June 
8, 1888, wa^ to Sarah Kulm. who has borne 
him three children. Walter, Florence M. and 
one that died in infancy unnamed. 

X. >t long after hi> first marriage Mr. 
Makemson engaged in genera] merchandis- 
ing at Pierceton, Indiana, where he carried 
on a successful business for three years. 
Disposing of his stock at the expiration of 
that time, he moved to the farm in Tippe- 
canoe township where he now lives, the place 
being one of the several quarter sections 
which his father divided among his chil- 
dren. But little improvement had been made 
on the place up to the time of his taking pos- 
n and the present high state of culti- 
vation to which it has been brought and the 
comfortable dwelling, commodious ham and 
other substantial buildings it contains have 
been the result of his own lalnirs and enter- 
prise. 

In all that constitutes advanced agricult- 
ure Mr. Makemson is a model fanner and 
the success he has achieved in this vocation 
alone entitles him to a conspicuous place 
among the most prog men of the 

county in which he lives. He has added 
greatly to the value of his land and by judi- 
cious dealings in various business enterprises 
has accumulated an ample fortune, suffi- 
ciently large to make his situation oik- of in- 
dependence. Not a little of his money has 
come t' i him from tl , | tine h< _ 

which lie is considered one of the largest and 
mosl rs in the county. 



Mr. Makemson is a Republican, hut 
while not an active partisan he has been 

atly interested in the success of his party 
and has done much effective service hot! 
an advisor among the local leaders and . 
worker in the ranks when campaigns have 
been in progress. Fraternally he is a mem- 
ber of John Murra\ Post, < '•. A. R., and :.t 
one time was connected with the Independ- 
ent Order of < )dd Fellows, hut of late has 
not been actively identified with that organ- 
ization. 

Like his father before him. Mr. Makem- 

is a man of pronounced religious views 
and makes the church to which he beli 
paramount to every other consideration. The 
Methodist creed embodies his faith and 
class leader, superintendent of the Sunday 
schools and in the capacity of private mem- 
ber he has rendered efficient service and to 
the best of his ability lived up to his ideal of 
Christian manhood. 

Mis. Makemson has proved in every 
sense a fitting partner to her husband, s ; 
ing his trials and helping him to face them. 
rejoicing in hi- ami taking pride in 

- prosperity, until now. in the sunshim 
a contented home, they are surrounded with 
happiness which results from difficulties con- 
quered and obstacles removed. She is de- 
votedly attached to the church with which 
■ husband is identified and is noted for her 

■ I works and charities be- 

st >w ed up. -ii the unf -ruinate and tin 
ing |»«ir. 

There have been few cascades, eddies 
shallows in Mr. Makemson's life stream: it 
has always had an ever deep ami 
flow. He moves steadily on. attending faith- 
fully to his own affairs and ol the 
•lie of America -t busi- 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



529 



less men, "I)" vvhal you do thoroughly and 
>e faithfully in all accepted trusts." He al- 
vays has a fixed end and aim in view, and 

\ hen lie acts it is quietly and with precision, 
de has a strong and positive will and in his 
nake-np there is no hypocrisy and nothing 
avoring <>i ostentation or show. He is lib- 
ra! tn the worthy and performs his charities 
n a quiet, unobtrusive way, which char- 
icterizes the true philanthropist and genu- 
ne lover of his kind. Throughout his life 
dr. Makemson has first of all been true to 
limself and it has then followed that he 
ould not he untrue to any man. One of his 
nain ambitions has been to do good to his 
ellowman individually, and at the same 
ime to use his influence so as best to sub- 
erve the general welfare of the community. 
n him Tippecanoe township has a truly 
01. ;1 man, a useful citizen and the 0*111- 
niniitv a popular and genial friend and 
teighbor whose sympathizing nature leads 
im b make any reasonable sacrifice it 
hereby the material ami oral status o\ hi- 
elli w men may he promoted. 



DAVID STOLER. 



This octogenarian and one of the oldesl 
iving citizens of Washington township, 
Cosciusko comity. Indiana, is a native oi 
led f '1 ird county, Pennsylvania, and was born 
November 3, [817, a son of John and Mag 
lalena ( Fluke) Stoler, both of whom were 
if ( ierman extractii m. 

Martin Stoler. paternal grandfather of 
)avid. w hose n ime stands at the head of 
his biographical record, was the flrsl of the 
amilv to come to America, where he had 



married: he settled in Pennsylvania, where 
he engaged in farming and where his son 
John, father of David Stoler. was born. The 
part of what is now the Keystone state in 
which Martin Stoler was at thai time was 
still inhabited by the Indian-, who became 
antagonistic, and drove Martin and his fam- 
ily to Virginia, where they resided seven 
. and then returned to the farm in 
Pennsylvania which Martin had first settled 
upon and where these pioneers passed the 
remainder of their li\ 1 

John Stoler, father of David, grew to 
manhood on the Bedford county, Pennsyl- 
vania farm, and there married Magdalena 
Fluke, who bore him seven children, viz: 
Abraham, who lived to he ninety years old; 
Catherine, who died in the fall of [901, in 
Pennsylvania in her ninety-fifth year; John; 
Mary; Philip; Susanna and David. 

David Stoler was reared on the home 
farm in Bedford comity. Pennsylvania, but 
at a proper age was apprenticed to the trade 
of masonry, and when twenty years old left 
the homestead to work as a journeyman 
mason and also at farming. About this 
time. [839, he married Miss Barbara V 
Shoup, a native of his own state, and con 
tinned to work at his trade about eight years 
longer, in connection with farming. 

In October. 1N55. Mr. and Mrs. Stoler 
came to Indiana and settled in Washington 
township, Kosciusko county, where he pur- 
chased a farm of one hundred and twenty 
acre- in the southwesl corner of the town- 
ship and paid for it all, excepting one hun- 
dred dollars, lie built a log cabin and con- 
■ted the wild place, in o mrse of time, into 
a first-class farm, living on it till [862. 
From that time until [875 he worked else- 
where at cabinetmaking, but still did a great 



530 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



deal of this class of work on his own 
premi 

To the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Stoler 
have been born eleven children, viz: Martin 
II.. George \\ '.. Drucilla, Frederick, Will- 
iam. Lovica, two that died in infancy in 
Pennsylvania. Samuel P., Tobias and 
J ami 

Mrs. Barbara V Stoler was called away 
in i860, and Mr. Stoler chose t'"r hi- second 
wife Marj I'.anta. whom he married in 1863, 
hut to this union no children were born. 
This lady died in June. 1893, and Mr. S 
next married Elizabeth A. McFurson, who 
died June j_\ inoi. also without issue. 
Since then Mr. Stoler has lived alone on his 
farm. 

Mr. Stoler has for sixt) years Keen a 
member of the Presbyterian church, of 
which for many year- he ha- served as a 
trustee and as sexton. In politics he 1- a 
Democrat and has always enjoyed the con- 
fidence of his party, whom he has served as 
supervisor of hi- township. Ili- neighbors 
have always respected Mr. Stoler 
the most upright of men. and Irs long life 
of usefulness has merited tli nition 

by his many friend-, who all warmly esteem 
him. 



DAVID DAUSMAN. 

Among the leading men and representa- 
tive farmers of Kosciusko county none en 
higher standing or have achieved a 
greater measure • »s than the worthy 

t of this review who li ne nf 

the mo-t beautiful and attractive pla< 
the township of Jefferson. Mr. Dausman 
has been a potential factor in the local af- 



fairs of this part of the country ever since 
becoming a resident of Kosciusko county, 
thirty year- ago, and today there are few 
men a- widely known or who have accom- 
plished as much a- he toward- the material 
development of one of the most fertile 
is in the northern part of Indiana. A- 
the name indicate-, the Dausman family is 
rman origin. David Dausman, father 
of the subject, was horn in Alsace, Germany, 
March 27, [816, and when thirteen year- of 
age wa- brought to America by hi 1 - parents. 
David and Mattie Dausman. who settled in 
Canada. Shortly after his arrival in the new 
world young Dan-man began working at the 
potter's trade and on becoming proficient 
engaged in the manufacture of pottery, 
which he continued with marked success un- 
til! 1873, meanwhile devoting a portion of 
his time to farming. In his young manhood 
he married Mi-- Magdalene Byers, who was 
horn in Canada, near Niagara Falls, on the 
2d day of February, 1817. Subsequently 
David Dan-man and family moved from 
Canada to Elkhart county. Indiana, where 
ntered land, choosing for hi- future 
home a tract in what is now the township 
of Jackson, lie made of the latter a com- 
fortable home and continued to live tin 
until his death, which occurred in August, 
Mr-. Dausman is still living, making 
her home at this time with a married daugh- 
ter in Kosciusko county. David and Mag- 
dalena Dausman reared a family of eight 
children, whose name- are a- follows: 
Jacob (deceased), Anna. Marx. Michael 
(deceased), David. Catherine. Samuel and 
Mos< 

David Dan-man. whose name forms the 
caption of this article, wa- bom in Union 
township, Elkhart county. Indiana. August 




RESIDENCE OF DAVID DAUSMAN 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



53i 



3, [848. Me was fortunate in being de- 
scended from thrifty ancestors, his parents 
»eing noted for their industrious and frugal 
habits as well as fur the sterling moral worth 
.vhich was ever a prominent characteristic 
M their lives. Young David inherited these 
excellent trails ami early exemplified them 
n his childhood and youth while assisting 
lis father with the work of the farm and 
fbtaining an education in the common 
schools, lie grew up with the predominat- 
ng idea of relying upon himself, and while 
-till young began to formulate plans for his 
future course of action, lie remained under 
he parental roof until after his majority and 
hen decided to devote his life to agricultural 
>ursuits, a resolution which he carried out 
vith results that are today plainly apparent 
o the people of his community and through- 
>ut Kosciusko count)- in general. 

As a worth) helpmate on the journey 
)f life Mr. Dausman chose Miss Tillie 
'hillips. of Wayne county, Ohio. Mrs. 
)ansman was horn August 23. 185 1, the 
laughter of Lewis and Harriett (Orwig) 
'hillips. natives of ( Ihio and Pennsylvania, 
espectively ; these parents moved to Indiana 
i! [865 and settled in Elkhart county, where 
Urs. Dausman grew to womanhood and 
t was here also that her marriage was 
olemnized. 

Two days alter his marriage Mr. 1 )aus- 
nan took his bride to Kosciusko county and 
legan housekeeping on a farm in Tippecanoe 
ownship, where he lived about three years 
is a renter. Subsequently he changed his 
esidence to the township of Jefferson, where 
n [877 he purchased the land from which 
le has since developed one of the lines! 
arms and mosl beautiful and attractive 
tomes in that part of the county. When 



Mr. Dausman moved to his place he found 
it without improvements of any kind and 
covered with a dense growth of forest and 
underbrush which required a prodigious 
amount of hard labor to remove. Like many 
others in similar circumstances he threw all 
the energy of his being into the task before 
him and knew little rest or recreation until 
he had reduced other improvements in keep- 
ing therewith. In the course of time the for- 
est was cleared away, stumps removed, 
fences built, a successful drainage system 
inaugurated, and recentlv one of the finest 
brick residences in Jefferson township erect- 
ed, in addition to which barns and other out- 
buildings were put up until the farm now 
bears every evidence of the advanced pros- 
perity which has characterized the career of 
the proprietor since he set out to make a 
home and carve out a destiny. 

Mr. Dausman's farm contains one hun- 
dred and twenty acres and is a model in all 
ol its improvements and appointments. 
Everything on the place gives evidence of 

the industry, care, g I taste and successful 

management of the owner, who, as stated 
in a preceding paragraph, has honorably 
earned and well sustained the reputation of 
one of the county's most enterprising and 
progressive fanners as well as one of its 
clear-headed, shrewd and far-seeing busi 
lu-sN men. 

In addition to cultivating his own land, 
Mr. Dausman is the business manager and 
genera] overseer of the Dunning estate, 
which is perhaps the largest and most im- 
portant agriculturist interest in Kosciusko 
county, containing eighteen hundred and 
seventy-one acres, much of which is in a 
high state of cultivation. This large place 
is owned b\ David M. Dunning, of Auburn, 



53- 



'PENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



York, a capitalist ;m<l man of affair-.. 
In niaii... illy such a largi 

requires sound judgment and busi- 
ness ability far above the . 1 h .ill of 
which, with other equally meritorious qual- 

Mr. Dausman ]>■ in an eminent 

; lc has proven worthy of the 
lideni i '1 in him and has ne 

tu render a strict reckoning to the entin 

nf the wealthy capitalist whom he 
represents. 

In a busim Mr. 1 >ausn 

has been much n than that 

of tin.- a i irmer : although lie 1 

without the least pecuniary help from any 

he has by close application to hi 
fairs amassed a o Hiis has 

the result of individual efforts and he i- 
therefore a o >nspicuoit 
made man. Personally he is kind 

taking delight in conferring 

his friend-, while his enemies, if he has 

cion against his character no blot 

upon his reputation as an honest, upi 

i kind and considerate 
husband and father and neighlxir. 

and in every way a most amiable and 
mable gentleman. 

Mr. and Mrs. I talisman are the pai 
.i seven children, whose names and 
of birth are ws: Stella. April 8. 

1872. died July 7. 1873; Minnie. Mat 

married Ansil I >. W eimer, a farmer 
of this count) : < "hades, January 8. 
married Nettie Palmer and Hv< 
t\ of Kosciusko; Samuel D., June 20. 1870, 
married Clara Thwates and i 
dent of the count) ; Franklin. June 28. 1880. 
died 1 tii 1. h. Jul) 24, 1887, 



nd < ioldie, who was born 
ind departed this life 
I (ecember 1 . 189. 



WILLIAM II. THORN. 

It much t'> say that the well- 

I of this sketch i the 

len of Washington tow 

that the county of Kosciusko i- proud t" 

number him among her most worthy and 

exemplar) - A native of Indiana. 

th occurred in Wabash county "ii the 

uth da) "f April, i v r many 

horns w< of l Ihio, in which 

if the orif 
founder of the family are yet living and. a* 
far as known, all who hear the name are 
for honor, integrit) and the essential 
element- of it and enterprising 

I tin and Rel Metcalf 1 

'I horn, parent- of \\ illiam 1 1., came to \\ a 
bash county. Indiana, as early as 1836 and 
I in North Manchester where the fa- 
built the lir-i flouring-mill 1 rated 
in that pari of the country. John Thorn had 
two brotl tc and William, the latter 
the pioneer merchant of North Mane! 
and . 4 fill business man. John con- 
tinued t" manufacture flour until seventy- 
four . meanwhile meeting with 

eci niitijj 
of the financially strong men of the 
county of Wabash. B) reason • 
btisim considerable ]>"r- 

tion of his wealth, which compelled him to 
spend nainder of his life in circum- 

stances far different from what he had f< >r- 
merly enjoyed. 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



533 



In religion he was a devout member of 

he Methodist church. He was an aggres- 
sive politician and for many years a local 
eader of the Republican party. Honored 
md esteemed by all who knew him. he 
SLrned the reputation of an upright citizen, 
ilways willing to render assistance to worthy 
aiterprises, free to give careful and disin- 
erested advice and in many instances afford- 
ng substantial aid and encouragement to the 
leedy and deserving. John and Rebecca 
rhorn had ten children: Hannah, Phoebe, 
foseph, William H., Sarah. Anna. Anola, 
Eva. Iantha and two that died in infancy. 

The childh 1 and youthful years of 

Wlliani H. Thorn were spent in Wabash 
:ounty in the common schools of which he 
"eceived a good practical education. When 
le was fourteen his mother died and two^ 
,-ears later he started out to achieve his own 
Fortune. When a small boy he entered his 
father's mill for the purpose of learning the 
niller's trade and at the age of sixteen he 
lad become so proficient that it was no diffi- 
cult matter for him to secure remunerative 
employment. He continued to follow his 
:hosen calling at various places until his 
fortieth year, meantime obtaining his full 
share of the amusements and enjoyments ol 
ife, besides saving from his earnings suffi- 
cient means to put him in comfortable cir- 
cumstances. 

It was about the year 1880 that Mr. 
rhorn first turned his attention to dealing in 
"eal (.state, from which time until a compara- 
nd) recent date he made that his chief 
business. His real estate transaction-, took 
1 wide range and for several years he trav- 
eled quite widely throughout Ohio, Indi- 
ana and other middle states, besides making 
1 number of extensive tours through various 



states and territories of the west, in several 
of which he now has large landed interests. 
Mr. Thorn has givai especial attention to 
dealing in farm lands, in which from the 
beginning his transactions have resulted in 
liberal financial gains. Not only has he 
traded for other parties, but by buying 
when favorable opportunities presented 
themselves and disposing of his lands when 
the markets were right he frequently met 
with the most encouraging success. As a 
judge of the relative values of all kinds of 
real estate Mr. Thorn lias few equals and no 
superiors in his line of business and all of 
his dealings have been carried on and con- 
summated with the object in view of satisfy- 
ing all parties concerned. His integrity has 
never been questioned in any of his trans- 
actions and when once given, his word has 
proved absolutely reliable and the end gen- 
erally justified the confidence which his pa- 
trons reposed in his honor and good judg- 
ment. Mr. Thorn became a resident of K >s- 
ciusko county in 1869 and since the year 
1885 has been permanently located in the 
county. He was united in marriage Novem- 
ber 10. 1 89 1 , to Mrs. Emeline King, widow 
of the late Albert King and daughter of 
John D. and Mary Shaffer, residents of 
Noble county and of German descent. Mr. 
and Mrs. Thorn have a beautiful, attractive 
and hospitable home, supplied with many of 
the comforts and conveniences and not a 
few of the luxuries of life, and their social 
standing in the community is second to that 
that of no other two residents of the county. 
Mr. Thorn is a man of decided convictions 
on all matters, and, being intelligent and 
wide awake, it is natural that he should take 
much more than a passive interest in public 
and political affairs. lie has always - 



534 



COUFEXniUU OF BIOGRAPHY. 



for pi and improvement in material 

and moral things and politically has long 
wielded a potential influence for the Repub- 
lican party, of which he lias been a stanch 
adherent e\er since "Id enough t" ex< 
the right of voting. Not an aspirant for 
official preferment himself, he works dili- 
gently in behalf of hi > friends and deems n- ■ 
sacrii B eat to make if thereby the in- 

- of the party may he advanced. He i- 
a member of the Masonic brotherhood, the 
principles of which he endeavors t" exem- 
plify in a life devoted to the good of hi- fel- 
low men. Mr. Thorn has ever been loyal 
to his convictions of right and has di- 
ed the duties of neighbor and citizen 
with the object in view of making his friends 
happier and the community better. Blessed 
with an abundance of worldly wealth, all .if 
which ha- been acquired by hi- own unaided 
efforts, he has m it been selfish: on the con- 
trary, hi- benefactions have been many, 
while hi- liberality and philanthropy have 
been felt n.it only in his own locality but in 
nther place- where worthy enterprises have 
b<. en prosecuted. Personally he is a man 
<•!' pleasing presence, genial in deportment 
and popular with all — in short, a typical 
representative of the enterprising, success- 
ful, -elf-made men who have done -" much 

.it middle 
; and advance all of its interest 



|« >ll\ S HEAGY 



The occupation of farming, to which 
subject has applied his time and atten- 
tion since reaching his majority, is tin 
e-t business pursuit of mankind and the one 



in which he will ever be the most independ- 
ent, i if course when this is said refere 
made to civilized man. because hunting 
fishing were the primitive pursuit- of man 
before he reached the civilized state. Since 
the evolutionists have shown that man 
comes from a man-monkey that lived in the 
last geological epH.ii and that the 
monkey in turn came from a -till lower form 
of primates, and so on back to protop 

uperiority of one person by 
birth over another ha- been aim..-! wholly 
given up. In other words, a- all mankind 
came from monkey-, it i- not in order for 
one man to brag that he came from a better 
monkey than his neighbor. So that farmers 
-land jusl a- high as merchant- or doctors. 
In addition, the farmer is far more inde- 
pendent. If he i- out of debt he can laugh at 
panics and periods of tight markets. Thus 
i- situated the subject of this brief memoir. 
|..hn S Heag) wa- b>rn in Wayne 
county. Indiana. May 29, i860, ami is the 
son of Theodore and Mary (Barnes) 
I leagy. The I leagy family are of < iermanic 

■it. the emigrant ancestor settling in 
Pennsylvania about four general 
In that state the grandfather and father of 
subject were born anil reared. The Barnes 
family is of Scotch de-cent. The father and 
married in Wayne county, In- 
diana, and to them these children were born: 
Eliza, who became the wife of Perry Bond 
and lives in Tennessee; Etta, who wedded 
Ed. Ridenbaugh and resides in Pien 
Indiana; John S. subject; William, who 
married Mi-- Emma Little and live- in this 
county: George, who wedded Mi-- Cora M 
Alpine and resides in this township; Homer 
married Myrtle Wickershacn, and resii 
Marion. Indiana; Minnie married John 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



535 



Veaver, and is now deceased. The father 
ioved from Wayne county to this county 
bout 1870 or 1871, and located in Wash- 
ington township, where he still resides, 
"heodore Heagy is a man who knows how 
j make money by honorable business meth- 
<ls. and was at one time connected with a 
lrge factory at Pierceton, Indiana. He 
ossesses more than ordinary ability, and 
lands high in the community where he re- 
ides as a citizen and a business man. He 
i a member of the Baptist church, and in 
olitics is a stalwart Republican. 

J< ihn Heagy remained with his father un- 
1 he was of age. receiving a fair education 
nd learning fully the art of fanning and 
tock raising. He determined to follow that 
ccupation and began to rent and farm tracts 
>r himself. On November 21, 1882, he 
larried Miss Flora J., daughter of Joseph 
nd Sarah Thatcher, of Pierceton, Indiana, 
ml by her has four children, their names 
eing as follows: Edna, born July 5, 1883, 
ied when nine days old; Earl, born Feb- 
uary 17, 1890; Ethel, born March 7. 1894. 
ied ( krtober 30. 1S94; Carl, born April 16. 
897. Mrs. Heagy was born in Champaign 
amty, Ohio, September 29, 1861. When 
[r. Heagy was first married he had com 
aratively nothing. He farmed one year in 
lis county, and then took the western fever 
nd started fur Kansas, where he took up a 
omestead of one hundred and sixty acres 
nd lived on the same for thirteen months, 
hen he went to central Kansas and rented 
ind and made money. He remained in 
iimner county, Kansas, for eight years and 
ontinued t" pile up money in spite of the 
rasshoppers and the droughts. Like his 
ather, under whom he was trained, it L 
asy for him to make money. His methi 1- 



take into account the saving of a part of his 
earnings. In the fall of 1893. when the 
Cherokee strip was thrown into market, he 
t( " >k a claim of one hundred and sixty acres 
and remained on the same for six years. In 
1899 he sold out and returned to Indiana, 
and bought his present farm of one hundred 
and ninety acres. He is in comfortable cir- 
cumstances and is respected for his many 
good qualities of citizenship. He is a Re- 
publican, and he and wife are members of 
the Methodist Episcopal church. He is one 
of the most intelligent and progressive of 
the younger farmers of the county. 



CHARLES R. LONG, M. D. 

This eminent physician and surgeon, 
now a resident of Pierceton, Kosciusko 
county, Indiana, is a son of James P. and 
Ebigha (Hunt) Long and was born in Mor- 
row county, Ohio. October 13. 1851. When 
he was two years old his parents moved to 
Henry county, Illinois, where they resided 
until 1858, then returned to Fredericktown, 
Ohio, where our subject completed his edu- 
cation in the public and high schools, from 
which he graduated at the age of sixteen. 
He then attended a select class for two years, 
held by a Presbyterian minister, and in 1868 
his parents came to Pierceton and here he 
engaged as clerk in a hardware store, where 
he was employed about six years. He then 
began the study of medicine with his father 
( who was a practicing physician ). and later 
attended the Detroit Medical College, of De- 
troit, Michigan, from which he was g 
uated in i88o. He returned to Pierceton 
and at once began the practice of medicine 



536 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAl'llY. 



and has since been recognized as one of the 
most skillful practitioners erf the city. 

He i- a member of Pierceton Lodge No. 
377, F. & A. M.. in which lie lia> passed all 
the chairs and represented the lodge in the 
grand lodge. He was master of Piei 
Lodge for seven year-, lie is mem- 

ber of the Pierceton Lodge No. -'57. 1. 0. 
( 1. I-.. has likewise passed all the chairs and 
represented the lodge in the grand lodge, 
and also belongs to the Warsaw Knights 
plar Commandery, No. 10. He is .1 
member of the national state and county 
medical societies and has been president of 
the count} society three times. Politically 
tin- Doctor is a Republican and was elected 
member of the school board several 
times. The 1 >OCtOr is the owner of two hun- 
dred and eighteen acres of fine farm land, 
and make- a specialty of raising line blooded 
Durham cattle and Berkshire hogs and car- 
rier on general farming. 

1 in March 15. [881, Dr. Long was uni- 
ted in marriage to Mi— Emma J. Hoover. 
daughter of Daniel and Henrietta 1 Heag) 1 
er, by whom he has four children as 
follow-: Nora, deceased, Adda, 

a and Floreri 



1IIR \M 0. KING, M. D. 

This -ful physician and farmei 

Pierceton, Kosciusko county, Indiana, a son 

and Rachel 1 Sw itzer) Kil 
was born in Noble county. Indiana. N 
vember i<>. [850. He attended the public • 

is native place for his prelim- 
inarj tion and took a course at the 

Kendallville Academy. At tl 



twenty-five he left school and began t< 

n the district schools. He also com- 
menced a course of medical study under 
the preceptorship of Dr. J. L. (lilltert. of 
Kendallville, and later entered the Detroit 
Medical College, graduating therefrom in 

Tin- of 1X71,. Not o-ntent with the 
knowledge thus obtained, he entered Rush 
Medical I post- 

graduate course, graduating therefrom in 
In [876 he began the practice of his 
at Moscow, Hill-dale county, 
Michigan, remaining there for •me year. 
In the fall of 1877 he moved to Pierce- 
ton, where he again opened an office and. 
with the exception of the time requisite 
to complete hi- post-graduating course, has 
continued here ever -nice in the practl 
his profession. Dr. King has grown in 
favor a- a physician and surgeon and now 
enjoys a most lucrative practice His 
standing among his professional brethren 
is high and the value of his services in the 
sick chamber has been long assured and 
appreciated by many families throughout 

tire c< 'iinty. 

iternally the Doctor i- a membei 
Pierceton Lodge No. 387, V F. & \. M.. 
has held all the offices of the local ' 
and i- now it- worshipful master. Dr. 

al-o hdd- membership in Pieri 
Lodge X 245, K. of I\. 1- a pa-t chan- 
cellor and has 

the I 1 subordinal errand 

In medica ns he holds 

membership, not only with the county, but 
inization, ami i- r attend- 

ant at the sessions of each He 1- a mem- 
• the United State- pension examin- 
ii g board, receiving hi- appointment under 
lent McKinlev's lir-t administration. 






COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



537 



On November n. 1879. Dr. King led 
) the altar Miss Ida Bethia Wilson, a 
aughter of Albert and fsabelle (Tro- 
ridge) Wilson, who became the mother 
[ one son, Ralph, born April 1. 1S74. now 
lerking in a clothing store at Pierceton. 
Irs. King was burn March i-\ 1861, in 
Coble county, on her father's farm, ad- 
oining that where the Doctor was born. 
Dr. King is of German descent. His 
ather was a native of Baden-Baden, Ger- 
lany, born in 1804, and came to America 
/hen he was a young man of twenty-six 
ears of age, locating first in Ohio, and 
a 1850 moved to Indiana. He was three 
imes married, first to a lady in Germany; 
lis second wife was Miss Rachael. Switzer, 
native of Ohio, and his third wife was 
Ats. Henrietta Potter. 



DAVID BALLIET. 



The gentleman whose biography is here 
jiven is one of the prosperous fanners of 
Washington township and principal owner 
md founder of the Pierceton Roller Mills, 
uid well deserves mention in the biograph- 
ca] memoirs of Kosciusko county. He is 
1 son of Stephen and Catherine (Zehner) 
Balliet. and was born in Northampton coun- 
:y, Pennsylvania, February 8, 1820. His 
loyhood days were passed in his native 
rounty and it was there he attended school 
until his seventeenth birthday, when his par- 
ents moved to Richland county, Ohio. To 
his former schooling was added two winter 
terms in the public schools of Richland 
county, and then he applied himself to the 
milling business. After becoming proficient 



in this line of business and having saved 
some money, he engaged in business on his 
own account in 1841, following it success- 
fully until 1859, when he traded his mill 
property for a farm which he conducted un- 
til [877. While he was successful as a farm- 
er, he ever had a yearning to again engage 
in milling and looked about him for an op- 
portunity to do so. The chance finally came 
and he traded his Richland farm for the 
grist-mill located in Pierceton, Kosciusko 
count}', Indiana, where he has since been lo- 
cated and conducted the milling business. 
Swme time since he disposed of a, third in- 
terest in the mill to Daniel W Strotise. of 
Pierceton, who continued as his partner un- 
til April. 1902, when Mr. Balliet purchased 
his interest and is now the sole owner in the 
enterprise. The revolution in the manu- 
facture of flour by the introduction of the 
roller process prompted Mr. Balliet to add 
the improvement to his plant, in order to 
meet the demands of consumers ami keep 
pace with competitive millers from other 
[ii 'ints. which was speedily done. The mill 
is now lining a large general business and is 
the wuly flouring mill in Pierceton. It en- 
joys a fine trade and the product enjoys a 
high reputation among the people of the 
county. 

The grandfather of our subject was 
Leonard Balliet of Franco-German parent 
age. and was horn in Northampton county, 
Pennsylvania. His father. John, and two 
brothers, Paul and Joseph, were the first of 
the family that came to America, over two 
hundred years ago, and settled in the Perm 
colon) Leonard married a lady of Scotch 
parentage and they reared a large family, 
consisting of eleven children. The father. 
Leonard, became a soldier in the Continental 



53» 



COMI'EXPICM OF BIOGR.lfHY. 



army and served throughout the long and 
trying !e which finally culminated in 

the independence of the colonies from Eng- 
lish domination. The names of the children 
born to Leonard Ralliet and wife are as fol- 
Leonard, Jr.. Stephen, I >an- 

. a. Joseph, 1 lenry, Jonas. Jacob. David, 
and John, who died in infancy. It will l>e 
seen from the chronology thai Stephen, the 
second son of Leonard, and who married 
Catherine /.aimer, is the father of OUT sub- 
ject. David Balliet. Stephen Balliet was : . 
cooper and blacksmith by trade, and also a 
tanner. He and his wife became the par- 
ents of twelve children, namely: Nancy, 
Benjamin, Joseph. John. Stephen. Leonard. 
Henry, David (the subject). Tillina. Cath- 
erine, Jonas and Mar) Ann. Leonard and 
David are the only members of the family 
now living, Leonard now residing in Wyan- 
dot county. Ohio, at the advanced age of 
eighty-six. 

From i860 to (869 Mr. Balliet, while a 
resident of < >hio, held the office of township 
trustee of Wyandot county, and also t' 
lice of supervisor. In his marital relations 
Mr. Balliet has been unfortunate and yet 
fortunate. His first marriage occurred Jan 
nary '■. [846, the lady being Miss Lena 
Swart/, a daughter of John and Catherine 
1 Drysbuck I Swart/. Children were born to 
this union, namely: Aaron, deceased: Ly- 
ilia. deceased; John Franklin, a banker, if 
Kansas; Marietta: Tillman, a resilient of 

and; and one that died in infancy. 
After the death of Mrs. BalHel Mr. Balliet 
married Elizabeth Balliet, widow of his 
brother Joseph. There were no children bj 
this marriage His third wife was Jane 
(Raney) VVeatherby, daughter ><\ Robert 

Kanev en the parents f one 



child. Charles, who ;i^i-t- 111 the operatii n 
of the mill. The fourth wife was Mrs. 
Elizabeth (Manner) Shank, daughter 
James and Jane McAlexander Manner. 
She was born March 30, [837, ami was 
formerly the wife of Abraham Shank. 

Politically Mr. Balliet is a Democrat. 

but of the quiet type who leave the turmoil 

|x>Iitics for others. The paternal an- 

>tors of Mr. Balliet are of German de- 
scent, coming to America prior to the Rev- 
olutionary war and settling in the l'eun 1 
onv. Mr. Balliet is an active participant 
in all movements that tend to the public 

od and enjoys the confidence ami es- 
teem of many sincere friends. Fraternally 
he is a Mason, having become a member 
Nevada Lodge, in Ohio, in [863. He 
has held many of the offices therein. In 
religion his early choice was the German 
Reformed church, but on moving to Ohio 
he became a member of the Lutheran 
church, there being no church of the form- 
er denomination in Richland county. < >n 
corning to Pierceton similar difficulty was 
met and there being no Lutheran church 
he became a member of the Presbyterian 
church, in which he is a prominent official. 



FRANCIS McN \M \KA. Hi. 

Francis McNamara was a native 
Clare Castle, County Clare, Ireland, and 

of Francis and Mary 1 I lass 
McNamara. a family long and well known 
in Clare Castle. 

Bridget McNamara. sisl 
died in the city of Philadelphia at th< 
markable a§ ne hundred and sixteen 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



539 



years. She was the wife of John Sweeney, 
a veterinary surgeon, known in Ireland as 
a farrier. After the death of her husband 
Bridget (M'cNamara) Sweeney came from 
London to America, to make her home 
with her si in. John F. McSweeney, a Cath- 
olic priest located at Maysville, Kentucky. 
The remarkable vitality of this family is as- 
tonishing, and the feat that she performed 
in crossing the Atlantic ocean when ninety- 
six years old can not, it is believed by the 
writer, he paralleled. The father of Fran- 
cis McNamara lived to he one hundred and 
six years old, dying in the old country. 
Francis McNamara, the subject of this 
sketch, came to America with an uncle, 
named McBeth, who commanded the sail- 
ing vessel Sarah, of Greenoch. Captain 
McBeth was an educated gentleman and 
was i if much assistance to Francis, the lat- 
ter remaining with him until reaching the 
age of twenty-eight, about which time the 
vessel was wrecked and lost: 

Francis McNamara, when about twen- 
ty-eight years old, went into nautical serv- 
ice mi Lake Champlain, which he followed 
fur two years. He then worked on a farm 
about niie year in Xew York, and then went 
to Fayette count)-, Pennsylvania, continu- 
ing in the same line about two years. Later 
he became a manager in one of the depart- 
ments of a paper mill owned by William 
Hogg. It was at this time he was mar- 
ried, the lady who became his wife being 
Christina Webber, a daughter i f John 
Adam and Anna Mary i Burkhart ) Web- 
ber. The} became the parents "t" nine chil- 



dren, 



namely ; 



William. John < ii n idli »w, 



Margaret Ann. Mary. Francis, Barbara, 
Bridget, Mathew and George Gordi n. 
Christina (Webber) McNamara was 



horn in Swartzenberg, Germany, in [813 

and came to America in 1832, when nine- 
teen years old, suffering shipwreck- on the 
passage. She found a home with a sister 
in- Pennsylvania, and her father, being 
wealthy, paid for a round-trip ticket for 
two years, but they never went hack and 
consequently were disinherited. Christina 
was a college graduate and quite accom- 
plished. While residing with her brother 
and sister the family removed to Fayette 
county. Pennsylvania, and there Christina 
met Mr. McNamara, to whom she was 
married at Brownsville, although they were 
of diverse religions, he being a Catholic 
and she a Lutheran. About 1840 Mr. Mc- 
Namara migrated to < >hio and purchased a 
farm of eighty acres in Jefferson township. 
Knox county, where he resided until 1881, 
when he moved to Kosciusko county, In- 
diana, and here his wife passed away at 
Pierccton June 21, 1886, and here, also, 
after a life of retirement of about six 
years, Mr. McNamara was called to the un- 
known beyond January 10. 1887. 

John Goodlow McNamara was horn in 
Brownsville, Pennsylvania October 9, 1837, 
and when four years old was taken by his 
parents to Ohio, where he later attended 
school in an old-fashioned log school- 
house, he being then about fourteen. 
When he was aged twenty-three he attend- 
ed the Haskill Academy at Loudonville, 
Ohio, for five months, and then came to 
Warsaw. Kosciusko county, Indiana, there 
he kept bachelor's hall and attended school 
one season. He next went to Columbia 
(it\-. and then attended the high school at 
Pierceton for two terms. He was next em- 
ployed in clearing ofl f( rest land for three 
and finalh became a contractor, in 



33 



54' 



COMPEXDJUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



which vi cation he erected twenty-two barns 
and i en Ik uses, g ing il i 

the lumber with jack-plane and di 
l>\ hand. In the meantime he took a course 
.n law, and also did some farm 
w< rk. 

hi [863 and 1864 Mr. McXamara was 
:i timber in Michigan, 
and there also he l>uilt the trestle-work 
- the Titawawassee river; later he 
took men to the pineries and 

three million feet He 

then returned t. Kosciusko county and 
it fifty-two acres of timber-land and 
into the lumber business for ah' an 
a year. placed part of this land 

nniler cultivation, later sold it and pur- 
chase undred and ten acre-, which 
he cleared up and made his home until about 
1901, when he retired to Pierceti n to pass 
the remainder of his days in peace and com- 
fort. 

The marriage of John G. McXamara 
innized in Knox county, < 'hi". Jan- 
uarj 1. [862, with Miss Caroline Beam, a 
daughter of Jacob and Marj 1 Ki 
Bean orn in Knox count) October 

23, 1841. This marriage has be 
with four children, viz.: Mary I-'... who 
died in 1866, when three and a hall years 
old: John Francis. who died Jul) 3, 1876, 
3 and three week- : I >or I 
Ada. born September [6, 1867, 1- deceased; 
and Alma Bell, born Septemhcr 27, 1868. 
died lei rrar\ 25, [8 

lac b Beam, lather . . f Mrs 
McXamara. was born in West Badei 

d there learned shoemaking W^ 
was -till e man when he came I 

Unit" - ami settled in Knox county, 

he married Mar) Kruger, also 



a native of Germany, who at ti 
twenty came U> America with her parents. 
who settled in Cant'. 11. Ohio, where her 
grandfather, John Kruger, met his death 
by a fall fn m a cherry tree. 

11 <i. McXamara is a skillful and 

tile mechanic, being a blacksmith, 

gunsmith, carpenter, cabinetmaker, and. in 

fact, a worker at any trade requiring the 

lie >tand> very high in the 

esteem of his neighbors. He is a member 

of the Masonic order and also a member 

of the Patrons of Husbandry, of which he 

was instrumental in organizing the first 

d unty, in 1873. In politics 

a Democrat, hut has never been an 

aspirant f< r '.nice. 



Jl >S1 Ml ANDREAS, 

• 

Josiah Andreas, a sun of John and 
Xancy Jane (Balliert) Andreas, was born 
Schuylkill county. Pennsylvania, December 
17. 1835. When lie was but a child of two 
years 1 f age his parents moved t" Mans 
field, Richland county, < >lii< >. Here his 
early youth was passed and through the 
medium 1 f the district schi •• 'Is he obtained 
his education. On la) le his text- 

ks he applied his energies t" mastei 
the trade of carpenter, working at that 
business for three years. He then n 
to Wyandol count) and engaged in farm- 
ing, which he carried ■ :i for eighteen years, 
meeting with fair success. In 1877 he con- 
cluded tn change his location, and n 
t Pierceti n and purchased seventy-on< 

acres . f land located in 
Wasl wnship. adjoining the town, 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



54i 



on which he has since made his home. In 
the cultivation of his farm Mr. Andreas 
has paid considerable attention in fruits, 
which in their season are the source of 
great income and profit. He also is a 
breeder of stock and his pastures afford 
ample range tor many fine specimens of cat- 
tle and hogs, which are fattened for the 
market on grain raised upon the (arm. His 
management is productive of good results, 
giving a handsi me ino me for the labor and 
care expended. 

On November 12. J 857. Mr. Andreas 
and Mary Petrie, a daughter of David and 
Lydia (Settlemeyer) Petrie, were married. 
They are the parents of nine children, 
namely: Amelia Carretta died at the age 
of twelve years; Phiana E. died at the age 
of twenty-eight years; William 1). died in 
infancy; Valiria died when twelve years of 
age; Emma became the wife of James 
tiousei" and they are residents of Akron, 
Fulton comity. Indiana; Mary died at the 
age of twenty-four; John Louis lives at 
home; Cyrus lives at Culver, Indiana; 
Savillia married Charles Brauer and they 
are residents of Fort Wayne. 

In his religious views Mr. Andreas is 
a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
church and has served the congregation as 
trustee and as steward. He is independent 
in his politics, and cares nothing for the 
platforms or policies under which the vari- 
ous parties seek to obtain office for their 
adherents. He exercises the right of fran- 
chise in favor of the man whose qualities 
and honesty of purpose are best known. 

The wife of Mr. Andreas was born 
September 1, 1839. and was educated in 
the common schools. In 1852 her parents 
moved to Ohio, settling in Richland coun- 



ty, and it was there her education was 
completed, leaving school at the age of sev- 
enteen. Her grandfather, Jacob 1'etrie, 
was a native of Pennsylvania. He married 
a Miss Zarrer, and they were the parents of 
six children. David, the father of Mrs. 
Andreas, was born in Pennsylvania May 
20, 1815, died April 20. 1881, married 
Lydia Settlemeyer, and they became the 
parents of six children: Jacob, deceased; 
Mary; Lavina, who became the wife of 
Nathan Hazenbaugh; Louis, who resides 
in Warsaw ; Catherine married Amos Eby; 
and David, deceased. 



JAMES HINTON STINSON. 

The above named gentleman, now trus- 
tee of Washington township, Kosciusko 
count}', Indiana, is a son of Jacob and 
Sarah (Wilson) Stinson, and was born on 
the old homestead in Washington township, 
August 12. 184(1. He was educated in the 
common schools of the district and at the 
age of seventeen laid aside his text-books 
and helped to clear and develop the home 
farm, becoming quite apt in the use of the 
ax and other implements required on a 
farm, and thus acquired a good knowledge 
of all the details pertaining to the business. 
On May 2'', 1870, he was united in mar- 
riage to Miss Margaret Moore, a daugh- 
ter of Thomas ami Rebecca ( Makemson) 
Moore. Mr. and Mrs. Stinson have no 
children. 

Fraternally he is a member of Pierce- 
ton Lodge Xo. 2$J, I. O. O. E. and has 
passed all the chairs and represented his 
lodge in the grand lodge. Religiously he 
is a member of the Methodist Episcopal 



542 



HPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



church. In the political field he g 
support to the Republican jkitin and takes 
an active part in the political affairs of his 
township and county. In 1900 he was hon- 
ored by the people of his township by be- 
ing nominated and elected to the position 
hi" township trustee and is now perf< rming 
the duties of that office in a manner credit- 
able to himself an<l satis factor) t" his con- 
stituency. 

Jacob Stinson, the lather of our subject, 
came to Ki sciusko unty in 1837, and en- 
tered -i\ hundred and forty acres ol 
ernment land under the administration ol 
Presidenl Van Buren. He was one 1 t' the 
pioneers of that earl) period who blaze 
way in the forest wilds for the building of 
the great commonwealth which now ranks 
among the prominent states of the Union. 
lie died in 1870 <>n his 1 riginal homestead, 
where he had lived since first coming I 

county. 

— •-►♦ — 

S \MIT.L RIDER. 

This prosperous fanner and ex-soldiei 
of the Civil war 1- a son of John and I ath- 
erine ( Hake) Rider, and was born in York 
comity. Pennsylvania, March 3, 1845. 
There he resided until he was ten years of 
age, at which time hi- parent- moved t" 
Whitley county, Indiana. It was there that 
Samuel again took up hi- studies, attend- 
ing the <>ld primil school-house, with, 
it- rude benches for -eat-, puncheon il«« <r 
and slabs laid upon pegs driven into the 
side of the house for writing desks. Three 
were d< dy and farm life 
and at the sixteen his entire tin 1 
given to the work of clearing the land for 



the plow. It was durii period 1 

Civil war when the conflicts between the 

sing armies told of strenuous efforts 
to bring the war to a successful termina- 
tion and additional troops were called for 
by President Lincoln. Young Samuel. 

gh m t of the age required, was strong 
and rugged and was imbued with that pa- 
triotic fervor which characterized the host 
1 f gallant defenders who offered their live- 
in defense of those principle- of 
ernment which lias made 1 ur country great 

g to Kendallville he enlisted as a re- 
cruit in O mpany F, Twenty-ninth Indiana 
leer Infantry, v to Indianap- 

olis, where he was mustered into the serv- 
ice, and with others forwarded to Chatta- 
1 to join the regiment. He was with 
his command in east Tennessee, and re- 
turned to Nashville in time to take part in 
the decisive battle around that city under 
General George II. I'homas; was at l!uz- 
zard Roost, ind followed Hood's retreat- 
ing army into Alaban ries of almost 
daily conflicts. The regiment was finally 
returned to Chattanooga, doing garrison 
duty for four months. In July. 1865, n '* 
regiment was a part of the expedition that 
moved into Georgia, going to Dalton, 
thence to Atlanta, and subsequently to 
Marietta, where he was mustered cm 

ervice on October _•-(. 1865. Drawing 
his pay at Nashville, he returned to his 
home and engaged in farming, clearing 

•ping one hundred and forty-five acres 
of wild land in Mai -hall county, and there 

r about nine years, p 
thence to Whitley county, taking up hi- 
residi Larwill, where he lived for 

went to Kansas 
caled a hundred and 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



543 



sixty acres in Kingman county, which he 
"proved up," staying two years, and then 
returned to Whitley county, where lie re- 
mained about nine years, coming thence to 
Kosciusko county and locating on an 
eighty-acre tract in Washington township. 
Tw<> years were spent on that place, when 
he bought eighty acres of land in section 
24, Washington township, where he moved 
and resided until March, 1902, when he 
purchased and settled on his present farm 
in section 26. same township. 

In March. 1878, Mr. Rider was married 
to Miss Rebecca A. Johnson, daughter of 
William 1!. and Mary A. ( Leferts) Johnson. 
Mr. and Mrs. Rider are the parents of eig'ht 
children, namely: John William, a resident 
of Pierceton; Elzie Edward married Hes- 
ter Bennett, daughter of Noah and Ma- 
tilda Bennett : Estie Clarence died in Oc- 
tober, 1885, at the age of six years; Elmer, 
aged three years, died in 1885 ; Effie Eve- 
line is a student at school: Alva, Benja- 
min and Alta are also attending school. 

Fraternally Mr. Rider is a member of 
John Murray Post. G. A. R.. at Pierceton. 
He has held the office of senior vice and 
junior vice. Religiously he is a free think- 
er. In politics Mr. Rider is a stanch Re- 
publican, but does not engage actively in 
political contests. 

Daniel Rider was the first of the name 
in America, was a Hessian, and belonged 
to a contingent of troops brought to this 
country by the British. On learning the 
cause of the trouble between the colonies 
ami England, he left the British army and 
joined the continentals under Washington, 
serving throughout the Revolutionary war. 
When peace was declared he settled in 



York count\\ Pennsylvania, where he died. 
He was the great-great-grandfather of our 
subject. 



JOSEPH WARNER, Deceased. 

This estimable gentleman and promi- 
nent agriculturist, who died April 19, 1895, 
was a son of Amassa and Cynthia ( \\ al 
ton) Warner, and was horn in Wayne 
county. Ohio. May 30. 1820. His early 
education, like that of the youth of those 
days, was obtained under those severe and 
trying conditions incident to the primitive 
log school-house of that period, kept up by, 
subscriptions from the parents of pupils 
after the scanty appropriation was exhaust- 
ed. Having pursued his studies with more 
than ordinary diligence, his progress was 
sufficient to secure a certificate as a teacher, 
and at the age of nineteen years he became 
a teacher in the district school of his native 
place in Ohio. His father, Amassa War- 
ner, had purchased from the government a 
tract of land located in Kosciusko county, 
Indiana, and in 1848 Joseph came and set- 
tled on one hundred arid sixty acres which 
he purchased from his father, located in 
Washington township, which he cleared, 
improved and cultivated, and whereon he 
resided until the date of his death as above 
stated. 

Prior to his removal to Indiana, Jan- 
uary 1. 1840. Mr. Warner was married to 
Miss Ruth S. Tillotson, a daughter of Asa 
and Ruth (Beehe) Tillotson. She was a 
native of Monroe county. New York, horn 
near the city of Rochester on August 30, 
182;. She was a child of about three years 



544 



C0MPEXP1UM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



ije when her mother moved to Ohio. 
There she attended the same sch< ■ 
which her future husband ua< educated 
and, like him, made the best use of the 
limited facilities for obtaining an educa- 
tion. < >n coming to Indiana to establish 
their home the) met the usual difficulties 
and hardships that attend the pioneer, but 
their courage was undaunted and. knowing 
that honorable and well applied industry 
would bring in time those comforts which 
make a home the "dearest spot on earth.' 
the task was never neglected nor the time 
wasted. As a result their efforts were re- 
warded, as evidenced by their substantial 
heme and w -ell-cultivated fields where Mrs. 
Warner \\>>\\ resides. They never enjoyed 
the comforting pleasures of parentage, but 
the innate goodness of their hearts wen! 
out to children who were bereft of parents. 
They gathered seven in the course of time 
and reared them t<> manhood and woman- 
hood, as follows: Isaac Harrison became a 
si Idier during the Civil war and nobl) 
up his life in defense of his native country: 
Clarissa Madden became the wife of Will- 
iam Clover, and is the mother of two chil- 
dren. Eva and Chester: Mrs. Clover is de- 
ceased, and the two children are now mak- 
ing their home with Mrs. Warner; Tillie 
Warner married Seward Crosby ( de- 
ceased i. and resides at I.arwell. Indiana: 
Marion (ialhraith. now a farmer of V. 
ington township; and Francis Moore, also 
a farmer of Washington township. 

The Tillotson family, of which Mis. 
Ruth Warner is a direct descendant, is 
closely traced back to a |>eriod prior to the 
h'. olution. The chronological record 
rly settlement in the prov- 
ince or color nnecticut, where three 



brother! descent settled and 

reared families. All of them were active 
participants on the patriot side in that 
memorabli gle. 'In the Warner side 

the same conditions ; ,re traced, three broth- 
ers, tchabod, Nathan and one younger, 
coming to America from England, and set- 
tling respectively in New York and Penn- 
sylvania. The) took an active part in the 
war fir independence from English rule, 
and later in the war of l8l2. It will lie 
seen therefore that the late Mr. W arn«T 
and the estimable lady who hears his name 
both sprang from that grand type of Amer- 
ican stock which became famous in his- 
tory and whose heroic struggle against the 
greatest and most powerful nation of the 
world added a new nation among the pow- 
ers and opened a new continent as an asy- 
lum for the oppressed of every land. Dur- 
ing the Civil war of [861-5, which so thor- 
oughly tested the enduring power of Amer- 
ican government on the hasis ,,f govern- 
ment by the people, the successful 
which insured, the perpetuity of our form 
of government ami its ennobling institu- 
tions, Mr. Warner was as earnest in his 
support of his heritage from Revolutionary 
ancestors as were they in its establishment. 
Physically disabled to such an extent as to 
prevent his entering into active service, his 
heart and soul were in the cause, and what- 
ever aid he and his estimable wife could 
yive was given cheerfully and gladly. 

Mrs. Warner still retains the original 
one-hundred-and-sixty-acre hi miestead, the 
management of which is under her immedi- 
ate supervision. She has about one hun- 
dred acres under cultivatii n ami the excel- 
lent appearance erything about the 
place slu.vvs a careful and thrifty method in 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



545 



every detail. Pleasantly located about two 
and a half miles from the town of Pierce- 
ton, her delightful, roomy residence always 
attracts the attention of those who pass 
that way, and the sense of comfort and 
pleasure it imparts is but the reflex of that 
refinement which dwells therein. Mrs. 
Warner is ever doing something which 
shows her innate nobleness of purpose, and 
her benefactions are innumerable. The 
last to know her as a mother was Miss 
Blanche Wilt, whom she raised from a 
child. She first married Edward Pocock ; 
her second marriage was to Joel Perkins, 
and their home is now in North Dakota. 



Ill RAM ULREY, 



The subject of this sketch is a grand- 
son of Joseph Ulrey, Sr., whose biography 
appears elsewhere in these pages, and was 
born in Jackson township, Kosciusko coun- 
ty, on the 2 ist day of July, 1867. His par- 
ents were Aaron B. and Alary A. Ulrey, both 
well-known and highly respected people 
who figured in the early growth and devel 
opment of the part of the country in which 
the Ulrey family originally settled. The 
subject spent the years of his childhood and 
youth on the farm where he first saw the 
light of day. and when a small boy was de- 
prived of his father, after whose death he 
went to li\e with his grandfather, E '■-<■■] '' ' 
Ulrey. With the latter he found a good 
home and during his stay under his grand- 
Father's hospitable roof was the recipienl 
of mam kindnesses, being regarded with 
especial favor and pride by every member 
of the household. His educational train- 



ing was such as the common schools of the 
neighborhood could impart, this being sup- 
plemented by one term in the high school 
at Xorth Manchester, and two terms at 
Logansport College. When a lad in his 
'teens he learned, under the direction of his 
grandfather, the shoemaker's trade, at 
which he soon became quite a proficient 
workman. 

From an early age Hiram exhibited a 
willingness to learn and his decided indus- 
try and energy won the love and admira- 
tion 1 f his grandfather, who did all with- 
in his power to implant in the lad'- mind 
the principles of honesty and integrity, so 
that he would grow up an honorable man 
and lie of some use in the world. After 
his mother's second marriage he returned to 
her home and assisted his stepfather on 
the farm until his eighteenth year, after 
which he returned to his grandfather, with 
whom he stayed until the spring previous 
to his marriage, when he bought a half 
interest in a hardware store in the vil- 
lage of Sidney, but shortly afterward, by 
the advice of his grandfather, he trailed it 
f< r a small farm near the village. Shortly 
after arriving at man's estate he formed 
the acquaintance of an estimable young 
lady of Monroe township by the name of 
Dencie Xoggle. born May 15. [868, to 
whom, after a brief courtship, lie was uni- 
ted in wedlock on November 20. [892 
Mr-. Ulrey was reared on a farm and after 
obtaining a good education engaged in 
teaching, a work in which she developed 
great efficiency, earning an enviable repu- 
tation during the several years -lie was em- 
ployed in the public work in Kosciusko 
county. Immediately following hi- mar- 
riage Mr. Ulrey moved to a forty-acre farm 



54^ 



COMJ'EXDIUM 01- BIOGR.U'HV. 



about one mile 1 1- rth of the village 
ney, Jackson township, where lie continued 
to live for a number of years, meeting with 
success as an agriculturist and winning f< r 
himself a • standing amoi g 

intelligent and enterprising citizens "i" the 
community, lie followed husbandry until 
the continued ill health of his wife obliged 
him to turn his attention to less arduous la- 
bor. Accordingly he left the farm and, mov- 
ing i" Sidney, opened a harness shop, in 
connection with which he also carried on 

shoe repairing, doing a g 1 business in both 

lines. Subsequently he opened his house 
for the accommodation of the traveling 
public and has since kept a neat and well 
app inted hotel, which from the beginning 
has had a well paying patronage and is 
now "lie i if the most popular places of the 
kind in the county. Mr. I'lrey still carries 
mi shi iring and the harness business, 

doing all kind- of general repairing in 1>< th 
line- of w 'ik besides dealing directly with 
;! trade in hand-made harness and 
appliances connected therewith, meeting 
with encouraging results in all of hi- un 
dertal 1 he industry and thrift which 

marked hi- earlj years are -till among his 
ni' -t pn mineni characteristics and. fully 
appreciating the true dignitj of honest toil. 
: . believes that man -In mid earn hi- bread 
by the -weat of hi- brow and looks up. mi 
willful i«r. i being almost criminal in 

aire and results. In all the essential 
element- i I true and upright manhood he 
i- easily the peer if the best i of ins 

village and county, and his aim always has 
been t' so do hi- duty a- to benefit himself 
and society at la 

Mr. Ulrey is held in high esteem bj 
win- kimw him and his large acquaintance 



throughout Jackson and neighboring 
townships has brought him to the favorable 

notice of all classes of people-, lie i- a cred- 
itable representative of one of the oldest and 

honorable families i I Ki sciusko coun- 
ty and. inheriting man) of the sterling 
qualities of his honest and sturd) at 

devoted his life and energies t • 

eneral welfare of the community 
porting himself in every relation a- a man 
who unselfishly tries to make the world bet- 
ter by his presence. Politically a strong 
Republican, he take- no very active part in 
part} affairs further than keeping In 
well informed on the leading questions 
fore the people and using hi- influence to 

gel g 1 men into office and elevate the 

standard of public moral-. The German 
Baptist church, of which he is an humble 
and zealous member, embodies hi- religious 
creed and for a number i f years past he 
has been one of tin- pillars of the congi 
tioii worshiping in the village of Sidney. 
His wife i- al-o identified with the same 
communion and in a quiet and tmostenta- 
- aided much to promote the 
work which the church carries 
Mr. and Mr-. I'lrey are without children, 
the only issue of their marriage dying some 
years ago. 



\ \k<>\ MILLER. 

Aaron Miller i- a native of Indiana, hav- 
ing been horn in Kosciusko county. January 
l8. [845. His father. Stephen E. Miller. 
nati\ e of < )hio anil was a son of 
Stephen I"., ami Anna i Rodabaugh) Miller, 
who were among the early pioneers of that 
State. Me wa- married in Montgomery 





^4/^rZT7<l 7?kMLk- ^im^^^ 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



547 



county, < )hio, to Elizabeth Landis. She was 
a native of Pennsylvania and from thence 
emigrated in an early day with her father, 
David Landis, to Ohio. In [834 Stephen E. 
Miller, the father of our subject, moved to 
Elkhart county, Indiana, and about one year 
later came ti 1 K< isciuski 1 c< lunty. He entered 
land in Jefferson township on which he set- 
tled and resided there until death. He and 
his wife were both members of the German 
Baptist church, in which he was also a min- 
ister for a number of years, and during the 
latter part of his life for more than twenty 
years he served as elder of that church. He 
died 111 July, 1873, at the age of sixty-two 
years, and his wife died in April, 1898, at 
the age of eighty-seven years. They were 
the parents of nine children, viz : Anna, de- 
ceased : Catherine, deceased; John H. is an 
elder in the German Baptist church and re- 
sides at Goshen, Indiana; Henry, deceased; 
Alary A. is now Mrs. Samuel Riggle and re- 
sides at Portland. < (regon ; Aaron is the sub- 
ject of this review; Daniel D. is a farmer 
and lumberman of Petdskey, Michigan; 
Jonas B. resides at Michigan City, Indiana: 
David E., deceased. 

Aaron Miller was reared on a farm and 
received his first knowledge of hooks in an 
old log school house in Jefferson township 
in his native county, lie was an apt scholar 
and tosl 110 time in his endeavor to gain a 
good education. Me applied his evenings 
and what spare time he had at home to his 
hooks and today is one of the best-posted 
men on all subjects in Kosciusko county. 
He aKo lias the best library in thecountv and 
is a great friend to education. In the spring 
of 1N71 Mr. Miller settled on a farm in sec- 
tion 12, Jefferson township, which he still 
owns. Here he resided until 1XS1 . in which 



year he moved to Milford, where he now 
resides. He concluded to retire from actual 
business, though he still conducts his farm 
and engages somewhat in stock raising. A 
feature of Mr. Miller's farm worthy of men- 
tion is his barn, one of the finest and best 
constructed barns in Kosciusko county, 
which was erected at a cost of about three 
thousand dollars. It is built in the form of 
an L, one hundred and ten feet by one hun- 
dred feet, the two ends being respectively 
thirty feet and forty feet in width with 
twenty-six-foot posts. It was constructed 
without purlin, plate, purlin post or beam, 
and is so constructed that the strain and sup- 
port is equal in all directions. The floor, 
which comprises six thousand six hundred 
square feet, is laid with Portland cement, 
and is divided into compartments for differ- 
ent kinds of stock, the partitions neing so 
arranged, however, that all may be thrown 
into one room. The building is fitted 
throughout with water pipes, thus reducing 
the labor of caring for the stock to the mini- 
mum, the water being conducted from a 
water system located within the building. 

Mr. Miller was married in Kosciusko 
county, March 17, 1870, to Miss Susannah 
Leatherman. and to his marriage five chil- 
dren were born, viz: Rosella, who died 
when about five months old; Mary E., who 
married Charles Shinneharger and resides 
on the home farm: Anna, who is still under 
the parental roof unmarried, and two that 
died in infancy, not named. Miss Anna has 
taken the full high-school course in Milford 
and will enter the Northwestern University 
ai Evanston, Illinois, in the literary and 
musical department in [902. She is a young 
lady of great ambition and personally super- 
intends the culture of eight acres of onions 



54 8 



COMI'HXI'ICM OF BIOGR.U'IIY. 



mi her father's estate, a fact of which sh< 
proud, and -he wishes to In- self -support ii 
Mrs. Miller was ln.ni in Kosciusko county, 
Indiana, December 20, 1845, the daught 
of Joseph ami Mary 1 Brumbaugh 1 Leather- 
man, foseph Leatherman was i>orn in Tus- 
carawas county, < >hio, about [819. and d 
in Kosciusko county, Indiana, about 187 
lie received a g 1 common-school edi- 
tion, and was a pioneer of this part of Indi- 
ana, having entered land from the govern- 
ment. Hi- vocation was that of farming, 
and in his community he was highly 
termed by all. Politically he was formerly an 
old-line Whig, but affiliated with the Repub- 
lican party after it- organization. Relig- 
iously he was a member of the German 
Baptist church. His wife, whose maiden 
name was Mary Brumbaugh, was born in 
Ohio about 1829 and died about 1886. She 
• was a member of the German Baptist 
church, ami she and her husband now lie 
buried in the Brumbaugh cemetery. The) 
were the parents of six children, four »■ ms 
and two daughters, of whom the following 
are living: William is a resident of Jeffer- 
township, this county; Mary. Mrs. Mil- 
ler: Conrad, a fanner. is married and re- 
sides on the old homestead in Jefferson 
township; Franklin, who is connected with 
the oil industry, is married and li\es at 
Whiting, Indiana: David, a shoe manufac- 
turer, is married and resides ;.t Anderson. 
this state. 

Mr. Miller is in politics a Republican and 

while not an aspirant for public office, he 

was elected in 1892 t" the office of commis- 

ner of Kosciusko count) and was 

ted in ' > in.U r two terms of three 

A few notewortl 
ning Mr. Milier's administration as com- 



missioner are here presented: When he en- 
tered the office in [892 the tax rate of the 
county was fifty cents per one hundred dol- 
lars, hut before the close of his term it had 
been reduced to twenty-eight and a third 
tents. The number of bridges in the county 
in 1892 was fifteen, hut during Mr. Mill. 
official term there were built ninety-tl; 
bridges ami twenty-one stone arches. Dur- 
ing his incumbency the county infirmary, one 
of the lines! in the state, was erected at a cost 
complete of forty thousand dollars and the 
county court house and jail were entirely 
refurnished on the interior in the way of 
papering, plumbing, heating and carpetii 
all these improvements being made in spite 
of the marked reduction in the tax rate. \ 
large saving was made in the cost of con- 
struction work, as follows: The price for- 
merly paid for bridge construction 
twelve dollars per lineal foot, including 

w len joists, and live dollars per cord for 

stone, while the COSt of laying the latter was 
seventy-five cents per perch. Mr. Miller 
succeeded in reducing these prices as fol- 
lows: The price of fifty-seven bridges per 
lineal foot was eight dollars, with steel 
joists, a saving to the county of thirteen 
thousand, six hundred and eighty doll 
while in the thirty-six others which v 
built at the former pri 

rsed instead of wood, as had been the cus- 
tom. The reduction in the price of t 
thousand, eight hundred and sevent 
of stone amounted to seven thousam 
hundred and forty dollars, and the de- 
crease in the cost of laying the same, twenty- 
sex en thousand perch, was eight thousand 
dollars, making a total saving to the county 
in these three items alone of twenty-nine 
thousand four hundred and twenty doll 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



549 



Another progressive move was in the direc- 
tion of good roads. When .Mr. Miller took 
the office of commissioner there was not a 
rod of public road owned b\ the county, hut 
during his incumbency roads were estab- 
lished and constructed in five townships. 
Jackson, Washington, Plain. Wayne and 
Franklin. 

Mr. Miller is a splendid example to the 
youth of today of what may he accomplished 
by one who started out in life with no re- 
sources upon which to rely aside from his 
own determination and boundless ambition 
and energy. These qualities, however, have 
been the secret to many successful lives and 
to them Mr. Miller owes his present high 
standing among his associates. He is a 
friend to all movements that tend to the bet- 
terment of his community and in educational 
matters especially he is deeply interested. 



WILLIAM ELMER GERARD. 

William E. Gerard, the affable propri- 
etor .if the livery and feed stables at Pierce- 
ton, Kosciusko county, Indiana, is a son of 
Isaac and Louisa (Kirkpatrick) Gerard. 
born in Plain township, Kosciusko county. 
Indiana. July 7. 1864. He enjoyed the 
advantages of our present excellent com- 
mon-school system in his native township 
and that of Tippecanoe township. Laying 
a>ide his text-books at the age of seven- 
teen he began his struggle for self-main- 
tenance ami future prosperity as a rail- 
roader, working for the Pittsburg. Fort 
Wayne & Chicago railway, with which he 
remained tor three years. He then turned 



his attention to fanning, but disposed of his 
farming interests and went to Fort Wayne, 
where he entered the service of the traction 
company as conductor and driver. When 
the old system of power was superseded by 
the electric system, Mr. Gerard had charge 
of and was conductor of the first car run 
over the road. He remained with the com- 
pany for two years, and then accepted a 
position with the Centliver Brewing Com- 
pany of Fort Wayne, remaining with ; t 
for one year and a half. Returning to 
Kosciusko county, he again engaged in 
farming, locating in Tippecanoe township, 
which he followed for six years. He then 
moved to Marshall county and in 1901 
moved to Pierceton and purchased a half 
interest in the livery business conducted by 
his cousin, Cary Gerard. Believing that 
the business could he better conducted 
alojie, he purchased his cousin's interest and 
is now sole proprietor. He has seven head 
of good horses, two sample wagons, and 
other vehicles necessary for a complete liv- 
ery and in sufficient quantity to meet the 
requirements of business, and, being cen- 
trally located, is quite prosperous. 

On January 11. 1885, Mr. Gerard led 
to the hymeneal altar Miss Elizabeth 
Coons, a daughter of Moses and Sarah 
( Hamlin) Coons. They are now the par- 
ents of three interesting children : Clara 
Lora and Olia. all at home. Mrs. Gerard 
was born at Etna Green, this county, 
March 4, 1867, and was there educated in 
the public schools. Both parents of Mrs. 
Gerard are deceased, passing awav at their 
home in this county, the father in [885 and 
the mother in 1880. 

Mrs. Gerard bad live uncles on the ma- 
ternal side who served in the Civil war. 



55Q 



tPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 






MILTON H. BRINDLEY. 

In 
jed 
in that a ell defii 

by correct princi- 

g 

g g 

\vi: _ 

may be s 

etl. 

niilv in Anu I its 

I 

•his 
ind. Jan 
n H.. \\ 

it 

united in in . 
Shanholts, 

S 

inn ni- 

iar in the I 
unity w j lived. 

- 

farming and tr 

I, where 
g until t 



front 
mpany C, Thirteenth Indiana Infant 

g 

try. He died ; 

tnemljered 

rity and a true patri iiis 

en children the 

:ik. Milton II \rthur a 

Norman, t g Martin and 

Milton H. 

. Indiana. .. 

: 

ruarv. 1857. In his childhood he 

- 
■ 

ts, meantime 

at intervals in the pub 
ill- \\;.- 

circui 
ither ha 
he ung, \v: 

make the most 

g 

• ■• 

ten the best g that can I 

ng 1 

im 
■ 

I the « 
t.u strength, his 

time 
I 
him in asking 

th him. In 
j unit 
- - ' 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



55» 



who came with her parents to the county oi 
Kosciusko the same year in which her 
name was changed to the mie she now 
hears. After his marriage Mr. Brindley 
took charge of his mother's little farm, 
which he cultivated until 1891, when he 
purchased the place near Etna Green where 
he now lives. In the spring 1 f [888 he was 
elected on the Republican ticket township 
trustee and served as such until 1890, when 
he was chosen his own successor fur another 
term of four years. During his incumbency 
he did as much if nut mere fur the township 
than any of his predecessors, aiming the 
improvements being several substantial 
bridges, three school houses and four or 
five highways, besides work of lesser mag- 
nitude. 

Not being favored with a finished edu- 
cation himself. Mr. Brindley has always ap- 
preciated the great value of schools and 
wjhile trustee gave the matter of public in- 
struction special consideration, lie spared 
no expense in the buildings erected for 
school purposes, although judicious in the 
expenditure of the people's money, and 
ii^ed his best endeavors to secure teachers 
of recognized intellectual ability and pro- 
fessional training lie managed so as to 
have two terms a year in each district. 01 e 
in the winter and one in the spring and 
summer, thus making it possible for the 
smallesl child of school age to receive its 
all-tied amount of training. lie is an un- 
tiring political worker and while serving 
as a member of the county central commit 
tee his township always came up with its 
old-time Republican majority and during 
the la-t two or three years as committee- 
man the vote was increased to a much 
higher standard than theretofore. In the 



year 1901 Mr. Brindley was appointed 
postmaster of Etna Green, the duties - £ 

which he has since discharged in a highh 
creditable manner, being a kind and oblig- 
ing, as we'l as an able and judicious, of- 
ficial. 

Mr. and Airs. Brindley have two chil- 
dren, both daughters: Nellie Golden, born 
December 4, 1883, is a graduate from the 
county schools and a stenographer and 
typewriter, 'being equally proficient in both; 
Roxie Van Orman was horn September 6, 
[892, and, with her sister, still lives under 
the parental roof. Fraternally Mr. Brind- 
ley belongs to Etna Lodge No. 268, at 
Etna Green, and Maccabees Tent No. 135, 
in both of which he has been honored with 
important official stations, being a charter 
member of the latter society. While not 
identified with any church organization, he 
has profound respect for religion and is a 
liberal supporter of the Methodist congre- 
gation, to which his wife belongs. He is 
a reader and keeps himself well posted on 
current events and general topics, taking 
a lively interest in the great political, indus- 
trial and religious questions of the day. on 
all of which he has decided opinions. As 
a neighbor and citizen he has always stood 
high in the esteem of his fellow men. he 
and wife being widely acquainted and mov- 
ing in the best social circles of the town 
and surrounding country. 

fhe above salient fads of Mr. Brind' 
ley's historj light the retrospect of a life 
oi usefulness, graced by a noble tone oi 
manhood and consecration to dtitj whosi 
influences are and will continue to be a 
blessing to society and a contribution to 
the best inspiration of onward and upward 
1 ii ■ i^rcssii ,11. 



55? 



COMPENDIUM OP BIOGRAPHY. 



J< »ll>; GAWTHROP. 

For man) years an esteemed and hon- 
ored resident of Van Buren township, K 
ciusko county, Indiana, the subject of tins 
review i- entitled to special mention with 
the successful and representative men 
the county of Kosciusko. lli> name has 

g Keen inseparably connected with the 
agricultural and industrial growth and 
velopment of the county and in the equal- 
ly important matter- of education and pub- 
lic morals he has also taken a leading part. 
While primarily attending to his own lai 
and varied business interests, his life has 
been largel) devoted to his fellow man. hav- 
ing been untiring in his efforts to inspire 
a proper respect for law and order and 
ready at all times to uplift humanity and 
make the world better. Hi- is .1 n< 
spirit and his life ha- been upright, 
well a- successful in the accumulation 
material wealth. I 1j- career contains few 
mistakes and abounds in much that i> 1 
orable and of good report, containing the 
record of an untarnished" name and a char- 
acter above reproach, which i- much more 
t,. he desired than great riches. 

fohn < lawthrop 1- a native of Kos 
usko county, Indian:., and date- In- birth 
from the 25th day of March. [848. His 
father. \m..- Gawthrop, a native of Ohio, 
was born October 9, 1820, and when a 

ung man came with hi- parent- (•• K 
usko county, Indiana, settling on what 
known as "Little Turke) (reek prairie." 
Van Buren township. The subject's grand- 
father entered a quarter section em- 
inent land and was among the early pio- 
neer- ■ f Van Buren township. as- 
sisted to clear and develop the home farm 



and when he began life for himself 1 

culture a- a vocation, lie was man 
May 11;. 1847, to Sarah Egbert, cleared a 

it deal of land ami became one of 
well-to-do farmers of hi- neighborha 
I le was a man oi t parts, indus- 

trious and thriftv, ami wherever km 
his word w d as his bond. I le 

"i\e i f tlu g citizens of the county 

in which iie lived, and until the break 
out of the '\ il w ar was a | )emo- 

crat in his political belief, lie nch 

and uncompromising friend of the Union 
and disagreeing with his party upon 
matter ery and its policies generally, 

ne severed his c< nnection therewith and be- 
came a Republican, continuing such to the 
end of his !a\ s. 

Amos and Sarah Gawthrop were the 
parents 1 f six children, the subject Ik 
the oldest of the family. Flon the 

md in order of birth, married Henry 
Gibsi n, a farmer 1 f Van Buren township, 
and ha- two daughters, Lena and Mabel; 
Mary M.. the thud in succession, died in 
childhood: Egbert, who comes after Mary 
M . is a citizen of tin- county: he mat 
br his first wife Die) Long, who bore him 

hildren, Jackson, who died yi 
Sarah I-'... a teacher in the public si 

rd: by his second wife, win se maiden 
name was Eleanor W 1-. he has five chil- 
dren. Karl. Ellen and Emma (twins), 

- and Charles; \ ictor. the fourth of the 
family, married Ellen Thompson, win 

Max 1. 1902, leaving two children. Per- 
nidia" and Victor 1 1 He is a farmei 
Van Buren township and look- after the 
interests »f his widowed mother, who 

- lu-r hi me with him. Charles, also 
a resident if Plain township, married ' 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



553 



Beattv. the union resulting in one child, 
Chester, who died in infancy. Amos K... 
the youngest of the subject's brothers, is 
engaged in the dairy business at Milford; 
his wife, who was formerly Miss Emma 
Rippy, has borne him one child, Charlie. 
John Gawthrop was reared on a farm 
and the period of his childhood and youth 
passed uneventfully, having been unmarked 
by anything of especial importance. He 
grew to the full stature of vigorous man- 
hood, developing his bodily [lowers by 
healthful outdoor labor and by coming in 
close t< uch with nature in its varied form-. 
early having learned to appreciate and 
value at their true worth the blessings and 
advantages of rural life. Being the oldest 
son, to him naturally fell much of the labor 
and responsibility of the farm and until 
hi- twenty-fourth year he remained at home 
and contributed to the support of the fam- 
ily. On the ist day of October. 1872, he 
was united in the bonds of wedlock to Miss 
Minnie Gibson, daughter of William 1\. 
and Nancy (Kennison) Gibson, and for 
two years thereafter farmed as a renter in 
the township of Van Buren. At the ex- 
piration of the above time Mr. Gawthrop 
purchased one hundred and twenty acres of 
1 artially cleared land in section 30 and dur- 
ing the following sixteen years lived 1 n 
the same, bringing the place to an excel- 
lent state of cultivation. He did much bar.! 
labor in the way of ditching his land, us- 
ing plank for the purpose until drain (ile 
was introduced. In [890 Mr. Caw thro;; 
moved to Milford and purchased property 
there and in [894 disposed of his former 
farm at a good figure. He continued to 
reside in Milford until purchasing his pres- 
ent place in 1894. He has a beautiful and 



weil-cuitivateU farm. which produced 
abundantly all the grains, vegetables and 
fruits grown in this part of the state and 
tiie general spirit of thrift and prosperity 
everywhere present on the premises indi- 
cates the interest the owner has taken in 
his wlork and the success with which he 
manages his affairs. The large and elegant 
modern residence which his family now oc- 
cupies was erected in the year 1895 ; tno 
building is beautiful in architectural de- 
sign, attractive in appearance and sur- 
rounded by trees and lawns, is one of the 
most imposing farm dwellings in the town- 
ship. 

Mr. Gawthrop has met with most grati- 
fying success in his business affairs and is 
now the possess, 1 of a fortune of consid- 
erable magnitude, owning, in addition to 
his fine farm and other property in Kosci- 
usko county, lands to the amount of seven 
hundred and sixty acres in Michigan, all 
devoted to cultivation and pasture except 
a quarter section of valuable timber land. 
From the latter Mr. Gawthrop expects to 
realize a considerable sum of money, for at 
the nvst conservative estimate it is claimed 
that the hundred and sixty acres contains 
at least one million feet of fine saw timber, 
besides 'titer of less value. Live stock- 
lias occupied much of Mr. Gawthrop's at- 
tention during the last six or eight years 
and as a raiser of tine cattle, hogs, sheep 
audi horses he has no superior in this part 
of the country. Of late he has given less 
of his attention to sheep than formerly, de- 
voting the greater part of his time, aside 
from farming, to other stock, especially 
horses, of which he keeps a number of 
very line animals, including a valuable 
br 1 mare whose colts have already 



554 



OMPENDJUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



brought him the sum gfcteen hundred 

dollar- He is an excellent judge of horse 
flesh and take- pride in tins noble animal, 
which in all ages has been man'smost use- 
ful and faithful friend. 

Mr. Gawthrop is a Democrat and lias 
done his party valuable service in a number 
■ f campaigns, both local and general, He 
i- well read on t! - which divide die 

political parties and has the courage 
of hi> convictions, being a man of pro- 
nounced views and with the intelligence 
and ability to maintain them. Although 
ii"t ambitious n> »ffice or aspire to 

public distinction, he was for five year- 
elected trustee of Van Buren township, his 
continuous retention in the position speak- 
ing well for his capability, faithfulness 
popularity. Religiously he and family arc 
Methodists and for a period of four years 
he held the office of trustee and treasurer in 
the local church to which he belongs. 

Mr. and Mrs. Gawthrop had three chil- 
dren, namely: Mabel, born August 27, 
1873, died when < >ne year old; William <i.. 
born September, [875, married Lih Price 
and i- the father of two offspring, Thelma 
and Zelda; Lulu S. was born April 2, [881, 
and i- -till with her parent-. Mrs. Gaw- 
throp's parent-. William K. and Xanc 
son, had a family of children as follows: 
Margaret is the wife of Henrj Bowser and 
the) have five children, William Morris I re- 
sides in Elkhart county, married Setta Cart 
and ha- three children 1. ll.ittie (the wife 
of Henry Xctf. of St. I • mty, Indi- 

ana, and the mother of four children). Ag- 
nes (married Daniel Xctf. of Milford, In- 
diana and thi one child I. Chai 

Luella, both at home. Amanda, wife of 
Edward Moore, is the mothei l chil- 



li, four dying in infancy: the others 
Jesse, Samantha, Kittie and I'.ret. 1 1. 
the third of the family, married Hattie 
Blough, wln> has borne him one son. Will- 
iam K.. a fanner of Harrison township, 
this county. Henry, who married I 
Gawthrop, a sister of the subject, 
tired fanner living in Milford. Harlan. 
the next in succession, has been twice mar- 
ried, first to Mary Dewart. who bore him 
two children. Minnie and Samuel < . : the 

■'iid wife, whose maiden name wa- Rilla 
Waldron, is also the mother of two off- 
spring, William K. and Victor, (.'lark mar- 
ried Ida Chrowl, his family consisting 
iwo children. Treva ami Gerald. The 
youngest -on. Charles, a resident of Goshen, 
Indiana, married Hattie Pinkerton. a union 
blessed with two children whose names 
Bert and Murriel. 



ANDREW E. S \K1U:K. 

Andrew I-".. Sarher. -on of Thomas I'.. 
and Martha A. (Thnmons) Sarher, i- a na- 
tive of Seward township, Kosciusko county. 
Indiana, and was Ixirn the njth daj of De- 
cember, 1868. 1 le wa- the youngest of three 
children, the other- being Edson B.. 

aphy appear- elsewhere in thi- history, 
and Louisa C, who died in infancy. II'- 
early life wa- spent on the farm, helping 
with the farm work during the summe 
son and attending district school during the 
winter. After completing the cours 
study in the district school, he spent two 
- in the Burket public schools, prepar- 
ing t" he a teacher. He l)egan teach 
the autumn of 1886 and ha- taught contin- 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



555 



uously ever since. In 1893 lie assumed the 
principalship of the Beaver Dam public 

scln »']s. which lie held for seven years, when 
he resigned to accept a similar position irj 
the Burket schools, which position he still 
holds. The greater portion of his vacation 
is >pent in preparing himself for higher and 
better work. He has spent several terms in 
the Northern Indiana Normal and Business 
Institute at Valparaiso, Indiana, and at the 
present time is taking the scientific course in 
that institution. His highest ambition seems 
to be to excel his present self and attain 
greater excellence in the various lines 1 »f pn 1- 
fessional work. 

Mr. Sarber takes a real genuine inter- 
est in the pupils with whom becomes in con- 
tact and hence has built up an enviable repu- 
tation among those with whom he has la- 
bored. While interested in the welfare of 
all his pupils, he has always taken a spei ial 
interest in those less fortunate boys and girls 
who get so little encouragement from the 
world at large. Nothing, he ^;i\^, gives 
him greater pleasure than the knowledge of 
the fact that a number of boys and girls 
have, due to his counsel, remained in school 
and completed the course of study who 
otherwise would have dropped out. 

Andrew E. Sarber was united in mar- 
riage. October to. 1888, to Etta Kstella, 
daughter of ex-County Superintendent Sam- 
uel I ). anil \xsa (Boggs) ^.nglin, whose 
genealogy appears elsewhere in this record. 
This union has been blessed with two bright 
children. Earl Fennimore Cooper, aged 
twelve-, and Beulab May, aged four. Earl 
began attending school at the age of d\ and 
for tiie pasl four year- ha- been neither tardy 
noi' absent. While he has kepi pace with 
hi- class in his schoi <\ work, he says he is 
34 



going to be a farmer. When he was four 
years of age his grandfather Sarber gave 
him two sheep, the increase from which now 
numbers one hundred and forty. He lets 
them out on the shares, is assessed, pays his 
own taxes, and this year took one of his fa- 
ther's and one of his uncle's horses and went 
out on the road and hauled gravel to the 
amount of his road tax. This lad seem- to 
have made a fair start to become that which 
he desires, an honest tiller of the soil. 



LANDON C. MALCOLM. 

The gentleman to whom the biographer 
m w calls the reader's attention has for over 
two decades been a resident of Jefferson 
township, Kosciusko county, Indiana, and 
though his life has not been altogether one 
of ease, yet today he can look back with sat- 
isfaction as he recalls the arduous toil per- 
formed, the many obstacles overcome and 
the victories won in his struggles to gain 
the independent position which is now his. 
But those sturdy traits of his Scotch and 
English ancestors were inherited by him and 
exemplified in the determination and perse- 
\ erance which characterized him. The coun- 
try is largely indebted to the sturdy and in- 
defatigable class of citizens of which our 
subject is a conspicuous example. 

Landon C. Malcolm is a native of West 
Virginia, having been born in Hampshire 
county, January 2, 1835. His parents. 
Charles P.. and Priscilla (Seiton) Malcolm. 
\ in- both natives of Virginia and of Scotch 
and English extractions. Charles I'.. Mal- 
colm was a son of William Malcolm, who. 
a native of Scotland, emigrated to the United 






COMPENDIUM OF BIOGh'.U'HY. 



State- with his father, lame- Malcolm, in a 
very earh 'lav. They settled in Virj 
where James, tin- rand father of the 

subject, afterwards resided until death. IK' 
was a farmer by occupation and was the fa- 
ther of three sons, James, Peter and Will- 
iam. The latter, the grandfather of our sub- 
ject, was reared < >n a farm and 1 that 
ion during hi- entire life. I le was mar- 
ried in Virginia to a Mi-- Burris ami by her 
had nine children, viz: James, William. 
Charles i'... Mariah, Ann. Nathan. < .> 
Lucy V and Isaac. 

Charles B. Malcolm, father of the sub- 
ject, was born in Hampshire county, Vir- 
ginia, in [807. He was also reared on a 
farm and engaged in agricultural pursuit- 
all his life, lie was married in Hampshire 
county, Virginia, about [829. to Priscilla 
Seiton, who was born in Loudoun county, 
mia. in 1812. After his marriage he 
irm in I lamp-hire county, Vir- 
ginia, which he had previously owned. Here 
he remained until 1N44. in which year he 
1 to Shelbj county, Ohio, where he 
purchased land and resided until 1 864. lie 
then removed t" Elkhart county, Indiana, 
where he purchased land and resided until 
i Si ii. then moved t" Kosciusko county, 
whei ' ed in 1 871. His w ife died in 

Elkhart count} in t868. They weretl 1 
ents of ten children, viz: Edward V.. de- 
li Samuel B., deceased, was a soldier 
during the Civil war in the Fourth Ohio 
' dry and served three years and 
months: Land' .11 C, the subjeci of this re- 
view; William was also a soldier in the 
Fourth ' airy and wa- killed while 

"ii dut} : Catherine, now Mr-. Joeb Sharp. 
iravelton, Indiana: Horace II 
in the Thirty-eighth < mio \ ol 



unteer Infantr} and served three years, be- 

i inmate of the Andersonville p 
-even months, and is now a resident of 
Goshen, Indiana; Jane married David Shive 
and resides in Iowa; Phidelia, now Mr-. 
John Malcolm, resides in Kosciusko 01111- 
tv : Araminta died in infancy, and ]<A 
lives in Miami county, Ohio. 

Landon C. Malcolm, the subject of tin- 
review, came with his parents t" Ohio in 
1S44 and from thence t" Elkhart county, In- 
diana, in 1864. He wa- married in Elkhart 
county, October 6, [866, t" Lucy A. Pierce, 
who was born in that county, June 24. 1S4+. 
a daughter of Luther and Harriet (Clyde) 
Pierce. The latter were both native- of New 
Hampshire and moved from thence to Elk- 
hart county, Indiana, about the year 1833, 
where they resided until their death-. They 
were the parents of four children, viz: 
lora, both deceased, Jane, and 
Lucy A., the youngest of the family. 

After Mr. Malcolm's marriage he first 
-ettled in Elkhart county, and in [878 pur- 
1 and -ettled. on the farm on which lie 
now 1 id ha- since lived. He owns 

<me hundred and twenty acre- of tine and 
well improved land. I le ha- had born t" him 
eight children, viz: Alpharetta. now Mrs. 

Id, • if N'appanee, Indiana, was 
a teacher in Kosciusko county; Minnie I!.. 
Harriet. Mr-. Edward Tindal. ol 
Muncie, Indiana, a teacher: Charles; Myrtle 
i- a teacher: Earl is in the high school it 
Mil ford, and i- fond of mathematics; I 'earl 
and Mary. Mr. Malcolm i- ; , good farmer 
ami makes a business "f general farming, 
^iv in.i; some attention also t" stock raising. 
He ha- always had a keen interest in the wel- 
fare of his community and because of 
sterling qualities of character which lie ha- 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



557 



evinced in his daily life he has won and re- 
tained in a high degree the respect and ad- 
miration nf his community. Politically he 
is a Republican. He is a member of the Pro- 
gressive German Baptist church and Mrs. 
Malcolm belongs to the German Baptist 
church. 



OMAR F. GROVES. 

< ►ccupying a prominent place aim «ng 
the representative farmers of Jefferson 
township is found the gentleman whose 
name initiates this sketch. During his life 
Span i f a little over thirty-six years has 
he been a resident of Kosciusko enmity, 
his birth having occurred here on the 28th 
day of September. 1866. His parents, 
Desken B. and Sarah ( Brown) Groves, na- 
tives of Ohio and Indiana respectively, 
were among the early settlers of the coun- 
ty of Elkhart, where their marriage was 
solemnized a number of years ago. Short- 
ly after being united in the bonds of wed- 
lock they moved to Kosciusko county and 
located on a tract of land in Van Buren 
township which Air. Groves had purchased 
some time previously. Desken Groves 
cleared and developed a good farm and be- 
came one of the leading men of the com- 
munity. To his first marriage, noted above, 
one child was born, the subject of this 
sketch. Sarah Groves died in June. [867, 
and Mr. Groves was again married, the, 
second union resulting in three children. 
Arbie, Yida and Cora M. lie subsequent- 
ly contracted a third marriage, which was 
without issue. 

( )mar F. Groves' childhood and youth- 
ful experiences were similar to those of 



most boys born in the country and reared 
amid the active scenes of the farm. While 
at home his time was spent in the held:-. 
except of the winter season when he at- 
tended the district schools, and he contin- 
ued thus until the death of his father, 
which occurred when the lad was but thir- 
teen years of age. This sad event was the 
means of changing very materially his fu- 
ture plans, a-- it threw him upon his own 
resources and compelled him to face the 
future alone and unaided. He earned his 
first money as a common laborer and con- 
tinued to work among the farmers of his 
neighborhood until attaining his majority, 
meanwhile attending school as opportunity 
admitted. On the 15th of March, 1888, he 
was united in marriage to Miss Chloe ]. 
Whitehead, daughter of John \Y. and 
Catherine (Brumbaugh) Whitehead, early 
settlers of Kosciusko county. Mrs. Groves 
was horn June 8, 1868. in Jefferson town- 
ship and has spent all of her life in the 
count}- of her nativity. 

After his marriage Mr. Groves moved 
to a farm in Elkhart county and continued 
to live there about four years, meeting with 
encouraging success in his business affairs 
and accumulating by thrift and economy 
sufficient means to purchase a fine farm in 
Jefferson township, to which he changed 
his residence in 1892. His place, which 
consists "f one hundred and thirty acres, is 
under a high state of cultivation and con- 
tains many valuable improvements, the 
buildings, fences and other accessories be- 
ing in first-class repair and the entire prem- 
ises bearing evidence of the well-directed 
thrift and successful management of the 
proprietor. Mr. Groves is a progressive 
farmer, a judicious business man and a 



558 



COMI'EM>IL'U OF BIOGRAPHY. 



striking example of the exercise of those 
correct principles which win success. His 
youth was beset with many adverse cir- 
cumstances, not the least of which was the 
lack of a mother's tender care ami a fa- 
ther's wise advice ami guidance at ai 
when boys 111* ■ — t need the influence of pa- 
rental d nt it .1 to direct them into the prop- 
er channels of life. That he successfully 
withstood temptation ami pursued the right 
course shows him to have possessed moral 
.stamina and a well-defined purpose to rise 
superior to his environments ami become 
of some use in the world, a determination 
whirli has actuated him from his youth to 

resent time. Few young men situated 
as was Mr. Groves in the beginning of life, 
without capital 1 r assistance which influen- 
tial friends could exert in his behalf, 
would have accomplished as much as he has 
in removing the obstacles from his pathway 
and winning not only a competence but 
teem and confidence of his fellow cit- 
Upon attaining hi- majority he in- 
herited eighty acre- of land and two thou- 
sand dollars in money. lie occupies a 
conspicuous place in the community. 
large number of friends ami is popular 
with all 1 i people. Courteous and 

kindly in manner and of unassailable in- 
tegrity, hi- cat been that of a typical 
American gentleman whose prominent aim 
has been to help others while building up 
and establishing his own success in life. 
He ha- a beautiful and attractive home. 
which is the center of a free and hearty 

tality. Here, surrounded 1>y famih 
ami frieni m by kind deeds, 

he finds 1 <■ in the 

changi rlj offices, without ■ 

would he dive-ted of mauv of it- 



charm.-. He 1- -till a young man. in the 
prime of physical ami mental manhi 
and, with the ; criterion, it 1- rea- 

able to predict for him a long and use- 
ful life. 

The home > f Mr. and Mr-. Groves has 
been made bright by the presence of I 
promising -on-. Ralph J. and Ji hn D., af 
twelve and eight years respectively. 
liticallv Mr. Groves i- a Democrat. 



FREDERICK A. KRULL, De< based. 

To a great extent the prosperity of the 
agricultural sections of our great country 
is due to the honest industry, the sturdy 
perseverance and the wis< my which 

-o prominently characterizes the foi 
element that has entered largely into our 
population. By comparison with their "old 
country" surroundings, these people have 
readily recognized the fact that in America 
lie th( -t opportunities for the man 

of ambition and energy. And becaus< 
this many have broken the tie- of home 
and native land and have entered earnestly 
upon the ta-k <-\ gaining in the new v 
a home and competence. Among thi- 
may he mentioned Frederick A. Krull, who, 
by rea-on of years of indefatigable labor 
and hones) effort, not only acquired a well- 
merited material pn sperity, hut also richly 
earned the highest 'fall with whom 

he - ciated. 

Frederick A. Krull. whose name forms 
■ 
:ingdom of Xctherlaml. ha\ 
horn in the province of Friesland, January 
-'4. 1832. His ' F. am! 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



559 



(Swart) Krull, were also natives of the 
same province and resided there during 
their entire lives. They were the parents 
ol eight children, named in the order of 
their birth as follows: John A.. Federick 
A., Ane A.. Isaac A.. Gertrude A.. Ami;; 
A., and Piebe A., all of win an grew to 
maturity, and one daughter. Doratha A.. 
who died in infancy. 

Federick A. Krull was reared in his 
native country ami attended school until 
about seventeen years of age, receiving a 
good education. Upon the conclusion of his 
studies he determined to make farming his 
vocation, and consequently hired out to 
a farmer in his native country by the 
year, in 1854 he, in company with his 
brother, Ane A., emigrated to the United 
State-, his uncle, Klaas Swart, and family 
being also in the party and all came over 
together. They landed at New York city 
in July of that year and a few days later 
came to Elkhart comity, Indiana. His 
uncle purchased land near Paris and the 
subject and his brother made their home 
wii'i him for some time, working at what- 
ever they could get to do. 

That same fall Frederick A., in partner- 
ship with his brother, purchased forty 
acres of land. About four years later they 
erected a house and rented the property to 
a married couple and then made their home 
with them. In 1858 the brothers made a 
trip through Michigan with the exception of 
purchasing land, having been informed 
that it was cheaper in that state than in In- 
diana, hut they did not like the country and 
consequently soon returned to Indiana. In 
the came fall they went to California, where 
they purchased three hundred and twenty 
acres of Land and engaged in the dairy 



business and vegetable raising, in partner- 
ship with Cornelius Yoimg. The subject 
and his brother also did considerable team- 
j ing across the mountains, from Sacramento 
b Carson valley, (.old Hill, Virginia City 
and other points in Nevada territory. In 
[865 the subject sold hi- interests to Ins 
brother and returned to Indiana. 

On March 15. 1866, Frederick A. Krull 
was united in marriage to Miss Simkjen 
B. Rystra, of Friesland, Netherland, Au- 
gust 20, 1841. Her parents. Bonke W. and 
Margaret J. (Smid) Rystra, were also na- 
tives of the same place and emigrated from 
thence to the United States in 1853, settling 
near Paris, Elkhart count}-. Indiana, where 
they resided until their deaths. They were 
the parents of six children, viz : Tetje, 
Jitske, John, Afke, Simkjen B., and a son 
that died in infancy not named. 

After the subject's marriage he settled 
on the forty-acre farm in Elkhart county 
which he and his brother had previously 
purchased. He subsequently purchased his 
brother's interest and resided there until the 
spring of 1881, at which time he moved to 
Kosciusko county and settled on the farm 
on which he resided during the remainder 
of Ins life. The home farm in Jefferson 
township comprises two hundred and three 
acres, all of which is well improved and in 
high state of cultivation. 

Mr. and Mrs. Krull had born to them 
eight children, viz : Albert F., born January 
14. 1867: John F.. born April 2<>. 1868: 
Ane F., born December 25, 1869. died No- 
vember 3. 1870; Ane I'"., born October 5, 
1N71; Harry I'"., born June 9, 1874; Mar- 
garet F., born April 2, 187(1; George I'., 
born July 30. 187S; Isaac F., born October 
Mi. [882. Religiously Mr. Krull was 1 



56o 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



faithful and consistent member of the 
Mennonite church, to which the family 
also belongs; the latter because of their 
many fine qualities are held in high regard 
1>\ all in their community. Politically Mr. 
Krull was a Prohibitionist. His death oc- 
currecl <>u the .}i-t of March. 1902, and his 
remains were interred in the Whitehead 
cemetery. He was a kind friend and 
neighbor and his death was a distinct loss 
to the community. Mrs. Krull and two of 
her children m>\\ reside on the old home- 
id. 



ULRICH VVELTY. 



In the romantic little republic of 
Switzerland, the country of freedom and 
cradle of liberty, the subject of this sketch 
was born on the 28th da) 1 I May, 1835. 
Ili- father, John VVelty, was also born 
among the mountains of the same country 
and his mother, Christina Gerber, first saw 
the light of day not far from the capital 
city of that historic republic. These parents 
were married in the canton of Berne and 
lived there until 1854, when they took pass- 
age "ii a sailing vessel for America, which 
country they reached after spending thirty 
days upon the ocean, landing in May of that 
year in the harbor of New York. From 
New York city they proceeded westward 
a- far as Putnam county. Ohio, where Mr. 
VVelty purchased land ami engaged in 
farming, a vocation he followed with varied 

>S until his death. alx>ut two 
I Ik widow survived a numb 

, dying in Putnam county at the home 
of one of her sons after reaching a good old 
F • lii) and Christina Welty weri 



parents 1 f ten children: John. Anna I'... 
Peter, Fannie, Matthias, Christina, Fred- 
erick, Elizabeth, L'lrich and John X. 

L'lrich Welty. to a brief resume of w 
career the remaining lino of this article 
are devoted, was i>orn in the canton of 
Heme and spent the lir-t nineteen 

fe in the country of hi- nativity, in the 
schools of which he received hi- educational 
training, lie accompanied hi- parent- to 
the United State- in 1854 and lived with 
them for some time in Ohio, assisting his 
father with the farm labor and occasionally 
earning money for himself by working for 
some of the people of the neighborhood. 
When a young man he left the parental 
roof and went to Adam- county, Indiana, 
where he hired to his uncle. Samuel. 
Baumgartner, a well-to-do farmer, in w 
employ he remained about one year and then 
returned to hi- home in Ohio. For some 
time thereafter he worked at carpent< 
a knowledge of which he obtained in hi- 
native country, and earned the reputation 
of a skillful and energetic builder. He fol- 
lowed the trade in Putnam county until 
(857 when he went to Elkhart county. In- 
diana, where he was similarly engaged mi- 
til about 1863. 

On the 7th of January. [862, was 
emnized the marriage of Mr. Welty and 
Miss Anna Hare, the latter loin in Putnam 
county. Ohio, October 10. 1S44. Mr-. 
Welty'- parents. Christian and Esther 
> artk) Bare, were native- of Virginia, 
but in an early day went to ( >hio and settled 
in the county of Columbiana, where their 
marriage afterward- took place. Subse- 

ently, about the year 1857, they m 
Elkhart county. Indiana, and -ettled in 
Union township where they -till reside, 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



561 



both being advanced in years and widely 
known in their community. Their family 
consists of the following children 1 : Ben- 
jamin, Mary. John, Anna, Rebecca, Cather- 
ine and Susan. 

After Mr. Welty's marriage lie located 
in Elkhart county, but one year later 
changed his abode to the county of Kos- 
ciusko, settling on a part of a farm in Jeffer- 
son township which he purchased a short 
time previously. By industry and well- 
directed thrift he subsequently increased 
his place until it comprised one hundred 
and fifty acres, its present area, adding to 
his improvements from time to time as well 
as develi piug the productiveness of the soil. 
At this time he has one of the finest and 
best-arranged private residences in the 
township of Jefferson, while his other build- 
ings, fences, etc., compare with the best in 
this section of the county. His farm in 
many respects is a model of neatness and 
good taste and the evidences of thrift and 
prosperity are manifest in every part of the 
place. Mr. Welty made nearly all of his 
improvements himself, as there were but 
few acres in cultivation when he took pos- 
session nf the farm. He replaced old build- 
ings with new ones as soon as circumstances 
would admit, and has continued to add to 
the attractiveness and value of the farm 
until it is now a home of which any one 
might feel proud. Mr. W'ehy does general 
farming, making specialties of no particular 
kind- of grain. By careful attention t<i the 
soil he ha- retained its original fertility, and 
by judicious rotation of crop- ha- always 
been awarded with largest possible return-. 
He enjoys a liberal income and i- recog 
nized a- 1 ne of the mosl enterprising and 
successful men of hi- township, having ac- 



quired sufficient means to place him in in- 
dependent circumstances as far as pecu- 
niary affairs are concerned. 

While progressive in worldly matter-. 
Mr. Welty is not neglectful of the impor- 
tant concerns which pertain to man- rela- 
tion untji the Author of hi- being. He is 
and long has been a denoted Christian ami 
a- such is a power for good in the commun- 
ity, both by his kindly admonitions and a 
life singularly free from the faults that 
usually prevail among men. He belongs 
t<> that branch of the church of Christ 
known as Mennonites, a body long noted 
for the piety of its membership as well as 
for their good works. He exemplifies his 
faith by his actions, which are quiet and un- 
ostentatious, and gives according to the 
scriptural admonition, not to let the left 
hand know what the right hand doeth. Al- 
though considerably advanced in years, Mr. 
Welty's mind retains much of its early vig- 
or and for one of his age his bodily powers 
are -till strong and active. Firm, positive 
and correct in his ideas, pleasant and agree- 
able in manner, and devoted U> what he 
considers the right, his life has been emi- 
nently successful and to-day he occupies a 
conspicuous position among the leading 
farmers and citizens of his township and 
county. Mrs. Welty is a woman of high 
moral and religious standing and for a num- 
ber of years has been an humble and devout 
commlunicant of the church with which her 
husband is identified. She i- the mother of 
eleven children, whose name- are a- fol 
lows: Ephraim. Emanuel, Levi, Hettie A.. 
Christina. Noah, William II., Minerva, 
Mary E.. Salome and David, a large family 
from which death claimed but a single vic- 
tim. Salome, the. tenth in order of birth. 



562 



MPENDIUM OF BlOGR.li'UY 



J< >IIX BEST. 

"Agriculture is the noblest of all alche- 
my.' says a distinguished writer, "for il 
turn> earth and even refuse into gold and 
ipon its cultivator the additional re- 
ward of health." This oldest of human 
vocations, and noblest of them all, has been 
honored by the successful > the sub- 

i this sketch. John Best is a native of 
Ohio and son of John and Mary (Cooper) 
the fattier born in Maryland and the 
er in Pennsylvania. The Bests and 
Coopers were among the early pioneers oi 
the Buckeye state and it was in the county of 
Stark that the parents of the subject met 
and were married. Shortly after uniting 
then- fortunes thej t"<>k up their residence 
rroll count) where they live'! for a 
number of years and later moving to the 
count) of Putnam. John Best, Sr., was a 
farmer and appears t" have been reason- 
ably successful in his chosen calling; he and 
his wife spent the latter years of their lives 
ir Putnam county and lx>th died there at ad- 
riu-y reared a family 1 tf seven 
childn sons and one daughter, namely, 

1, John, Abraham, Isaac, Sarah 
V. Ji iseph and William. 

the third son, was born Au- 
gust i". 1823, in Carroll county, Ohio, and 
remained on the home farm until his eight- 
eenth year, lie then went to the town of 

and entered np.ni a three-years 
prenticeship to learn blacksmi thing, at the 
end of which time he started >f his 

own m Carroll unity. Being idem 

workman, he soon built up a large and lu- 
crative business and was thus ed in 
v until about tin v lien 
he n ■ int^ of Putnam. 



Mr Best remained in Putnam county 
working at his trade until 1865, at which 
time he disposed of his interests there and 
with a wagon and t ed his 

family t< . Kosciusko county, Indiana. 
suming one week on the way. The trip was 

aid tiresome, made doubly so l»\ 
roads, some of which led through a new and 
sparsel) settled country and others beit 
deep with mud as to rentier travelinj 
most impossible. On reaching his destina- 
tion Mr. Best purchased the place in Jeffer- 
son township mi which he now lives 

Ji he has increased its since 

taking possession. Since becoming a resi- 
dent of Kosciusko county he has devoted 
his time and em (cultural pur- 

suits and at the present time owns a beauti- 
ful farm of one hundred and thirty - 
acres, of which eighty-five are in cultivation. 
He has made many valuable improvements 
mu his place, including a commodious dwell- 
ed barn and out-buildings and 
fences, and has. in places, put in a siico 
system of drainage by means of which much 
valuable land has la-en reclaimed. 

Mr. Best was one of the leading agri- 
culturists of Jefferson township as lot 

ntinued actively engaged in farming, 
hut having accumulated a sufficient amount 
of worldly wealth to render further labor 
unnecessary, he turned his place over to 
other hands and is now living a life of hon- 
orable retirement. lie still manages his 
business affairs, imt by reason of advancing 
spends the greater part of his time in 
njoyment of the rest and quietude 
which he has so nobly earned by a long life 
of patient industry. Mr. Best served his 
township as justice of the peace for a p. 
of more than twent) I disch; 



COMPEXDIL'M OF BIOGRAPHY. 



563 



the duties pertaining thereto with an ability 
that brought him to the favorable notice of 
a large number of people in all parts of the 
county. 'Die wisdom of his decisions and 
the soundness of his judgment caused many 
important matters to be brought to his court 
and during his incumbency he passed upon 
more cases and adjusted mure difficulties, 
perhaps, than any other justice of the peace 
in the county of Kosciusko. 

Politically Mr. Best is a Democrat and 
as such has rendered valuable service during 
a number of campaigns. His religious 
views are in accord with the Evangelical 
Lutheran church, of which both himself and 
wife are faithful and consistent members. 
He has a profound regard fur sacred things 
and ever since uniting with the church has 
lived a life consistent with his profession, 
hi- actions speaking louder than words as 
to the sincerity with which he discharges 
every conscious religious duty. He i- a 
liberal supporter of his own denomination. 
but his benefactions do not end there, all 
charities and benevolent objects sharing the 
means which he dispense-. 

Mr. Best is a good man and no one 
stands higher than he in the esteem of the 
public, all who know him respecting him for 
the purity of his daily life and for his ster- 
ling Christian character; his integrity has 
never been questioned and wherever he is 
known his word is as good as his written 
1 bligation with the best of indorsement. 

( >n the [6th of April. [848, Mr. Besl 
was united in marriage to Miss Mary J. 
Young, whose birth occurred in London- 
derry, Ireland, on the 28th day of April. 
1829. Mrs. Best's parents. William and 
Martha I Russell) Young, left their native 
country in 1839 and started for the United 



States, but before reaching their destination 
the father died and was buried at sea. The 
mother and five children finally landed in 
the harbor of New York and proceeded 
thence to Philadelphia, from which city they 
afterwards moved to Carroll county. Ohio, 
where the mother purchased a farm near the 
town of Waynesburg. She managed her 
farm well, lived to see her children well pro- 
vided for and departed this life a number of 
years ago. The children were Mary J., 
James B.. Robert R., Sarah A. and Isa- 
bella J. The family of Mr. and Mrs. Best 
number thirteen children, whose names and 
dates of birth are as follows: Mary M., 
April 1, 1849: Sarah M., ( Ictober 31, 1851 ; 
Amanda J., August 5, 1853; James M., 
August 19, 1S55; Susan A., August 18, 
1857; Robert R.. January 13. i860; Arta- 
missa A.. November 12. 1861 : John W., De- 
cember 18. 1863; Isaac W., April 1, r866; 
Sylvanus B., December 17. 1867: Cora B., 
June 4, 1869. and two that died 111 infancy 
before being named. 



SIMON HEPLER. 



The name of Simon llepler is familiarly 
known throughout the township of Jeffer- 
son, of which he has been a substantia] and 
enterprising citizen since the year 1889. 
His paternal ancestors were among the early 
settlers of Westmoreland county. Pennsyl- 
vania;, and on the mother's side be is de- 
scended from an old family of Stark county. 
Ohio. His grandfather. Daniel llepler. was 
born and reared in Pennsylvania and there 
married Catherine Kline, a native of the 
county of Westmoreland. Aboul the 



564 



COMI'E.XniUU OF BIOGRAPHY. 



1823 this worthy couple migrated to Car- 
rol] county, < >hio, where the husband and 
father purchased a tract of government land 
from which he cleared and developed a 
farm. He remained in that county until his 
death, which occurred in 1N41 at the 
sixty years. Subsequently his widow came 
with certain members of the family to Kos- 
ciusko county. Indiana, where 
home with her children until summoned t" 
join her husband in the great beyond. Dan- 
iel and Catherine Hepler had thirteen chil- 
dren, nine of whom grew t<> mature years, 
namely: Samuel S., Jacob, Barbara, Eliza- 
beth, Hannah, John D.. Catherine. Mary 
and Daniel, the others dying young. 

John D. Hepler, fifth of the family, was 
born December 18, [821, in Westmoreland 
county, Pennsylvania, and when less than 
three year- of age was taken by h\- parents 
to Ohio, lie grew to manhood's estate in 
ill county and in [84] was united in 
marriage in the county of Stark to Miss 
Catherine Bortz, a native of < >hi". bom 

March -•-'. [822. She was the daughter of 
Daniel and Elizabeth (Cressman) Bortz, of 
Stark county, where the antecedents "it both 

of the family settled in an early day. 
In the year 1N44 John D. Hepler disposed 
of his interests in the Buckeye state and 
came t" Kosciusko county, Indiana, settling 
in Sett township, where he has since made 
his home, lie ; s one of the substantial old 

ns of the township in which he lives 
and is well liked by a large circle of ft 
who have learned to esteem him for his 

many sterling qualities of manh 1. lie h 

the father of a large family, namely: Al- 
pheus (deceased), Samuel 1 deceased 1. 

than. Franklin, Sophia. James (de- 
inda, a daughter that dii 



infancy, David, Simon. Elizabeth and Ma- 
tilda. 

Reverting to the life story of the direct 
subject of this sketch, it is learned that 
Simon 1 lepler is a native of Kosciusko coun- 
ty, Indiana, and that his birth occurred in 
Scott township on the 4th of November, 
[851. His childhood and youthful experi- 
were pretty much like those of the 
majority of hoys reared in the rural districts 
and. like them, he s]>ent his time alternately 
at work on the farm and in district schools 
preparing himself for life's future duties, 
lie was his father '> faithful assistant until 
reaching an age when young men are ex- 
to start in the world as independent 
factors; he then selected agriculture for a 
vocation and has since pursued that honor- 
able calling with sufficient success t,, win for 
himself a respectable standing among those 
of his township similarly engaged. 

Mr. Hepler was married in Henry coun- 
ty, 1 'liio. January _}. [889, to Mis- Susie E. 
I loover, whose birth occurred in that county 
on the 25th day of August, [866. She is the 
daughter of Abraham and Catherine Hoo- 
ver and the third of nine children, the names 
of her brothers and sisters being as follows. 
Mary. Elizabeth, Cordelia M.. Jennie 1.. 
: |i. George W., Ellie, and an un- 
named infant. Mr. and Mis. Hepler's home 
is brightened by the presence of one child, 
a daughter 1>\ the name of Blanch X.. a 
young lady in whom are centered many fond 
- for the future. 

Shortly after Mr. Hepler's marriage he 
settled on the farm in Jefferson township 
which came into his | short time 

previous to January. 1889, and on which he 
-nice lived and prospered. The place 
contains eight) acres, of which sixty are in 






COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



565 



cultivation, the soil being- remarkably pro- 
ductive, the original fertility having been 
retained and in places greatly strengthened 
b\ drainage and artificial fertilizing. Mr. 
Hepler has a good, convenient house, a sub- 
stantia] barn and other outbuildings, all of 
which represent his own labor and capital. 
His Other improvements are good and in 
first-class repair and the fine condition of 
the fields plainly bear evidence to the care 
and pains which have been devoted to the 
soil by the energetic and progressive owner. 
The farm in its present fine condition, with 
buildings and all improvements, including a 
great deal of ditching, is a monument to 
Mr. Hepler's industry and thrift. The place 
was originally a thick woods, filled with a 
dense growth, of underbrush. To bring it to 
its present state required much work, nearly 
all of which has been done with Mr. Hep- 
ler's own hands or by his direction. While 
not as large as some other farms in Jeffer- 
son township, his place is highly cultivated. 
produces abundantly and yields much more 
than a living, his income being such as to 
place him in comfortable, if not independent, 
circumstances. Mr. Hepler is an energetic, 
go-ahead, up-to-date fanner, familiar with 
agriculture in all of its details, and takes ad- 
vantage of every opportunity to keep his 
acres at their full productive capacity. He 
stands well as a citizen and has always Mb- 
tained the character of an honest, upright 
man. In politics he supports the Democratic 
party, and, being a reader and in touch with 
current thought, is able to give an intelligent 
reason for his convictions and opinions. He 
contents himself with working for his part) 
and voting for its nominees, having no am- 
bition to gratify in the way of public office. 
He lives a quiet, contented life and does all 



the good within his power to promote the 
general welfare; he is also an advocate of all 
measures for the general welfare and uses 
bis influence on the right side of every moral 
issue. 



MILTON WOODS. 



A gentleman true to the duties of cit- 
izenship, faithful to every trust reposed in 
him and well worthy the high regard in 
which he is held — such is the well known 
resident of Kosciusko county whose brief 
life story is herewith presented. Milton 
Woods is the son of John and Mariah 
(Moore) Woods, who were among the 
early settlers of Turkey Creek township, 
the father coming to this county from Ohio 
when a young m|an and spending the re- 
mainder of his life where he originally lo- 
cated. He died in the prime of life, but his 
willow still survives, having reached the 
ripe old age of eighty-five years. John 
Woods was a farmer and a local minister 
of the Methodist church. He preached at 
places where there were no regularly or- 
ganized congregations, officiated at wed- 
dings and funerals, but was never engaged 
as a settled pastor, giving bis services freely 
wherever and whenever they were re- 
quested. He was a sincere Christian, did 
much for the cause of the Master by his 
public ministrations and always exerted a 
strong influence for good by the blame- 
less character of his every-day life. He 
was the father of five children, the subject 
of this sketch being the only one living; 
the others were Caroline, Joseph, William 
and Elizabeth. 

Milton Woods was born fanuary ,}. 



566 



PENDIUM OF BlOuR.-U'llV. 



county, Indiana, and 
spent an uneventful childhood on hi 
ther's farm. He was a pupil in the public 
Is until his fifteenth year, at which 
earl) age he began life for hims 
farm hand and continued in that capacit) 
tlir greater pari of the time until his mar- 
in 18 'i . For some time he was em 
lo farmer bj the name 
of Samuel Baker, between whi se daughter 
•hine and himself a tender attachment 
sprang up, which finally led toman 

eremonj being solemnized "ii Decem- 

the above year. 
\fter taking t" himself a companion 
and helpmeet Mr. Woods rented a farm in 
Sparta township, Noble county, where he 
lived for a short time, subsequently return- 
is ■ sciusko >■ unty and purchasing 
the place in Turkey Creek township on 
whicli he has since resided and prospered, 
farmer ho ha- been enterprising and 
progressive, but of recent year- Ik- ha- de- 
pended largely upon live stock a- the chiel 
his income, being recognized as 
i me of the mosl successful cattle rais< 
the county. At the present time he ha- a 
herd consisting "i ninety head of fine ani- 
mal- in prime condition, in addition to 
which lie keeps quite a number of 
bied swit ral valuable horse-, the 

il appearance of his st,,ck indicating 
ire and attention he ha- devoted to this 
important branch of industry. 

Mr Woods ha- a beautiful home ami 
•t been sparing of his mean- in supply- 
: with the comforts and conveniences 
calculated to vender agreeable the ' 

wife's ind make the place the di 

-|H,t on earth to all the inmates. 1 ti 

in utilizing the good things of this world anil 



aim- to crowd into Ins own and the 

ndent upon him all the pleasure 
and satisfaction that can possibly be 
tained. 

\- her I, Mr. W< ods was united 

in marriage, December -'<>. 1861, to Miss 
Josephine Baker. She wa- boon m Sum- 
merford, Madison county. Ohio, April i,;. 
3 ;_'. Her father. Samuel Baker, wa- a na- 
tive of Virginia, horn in < tetober, 1809, and 
died Ma) 23, [864. He n 

actical education, and in his early life he 
took up the vocation ><i baking. Later, how- 
ever, he followed farming. Politically he 
wa- first a Wing ami later a Republican. \ 
member of the Church of God, he wa- of a 
religious make-up and one time conside 
seriously the question of entering the active 
ministry. Hi- wife. Nancy, also wa- a na- 
tive of Virginia, horn April 6, 1813, and her 
ith occurred aboul 1895. She wa- twen- 
ty-two years of age when -he left her na- 
tive state and located in < >hio, where -he 
married. She possessed line trait- of char- 
acter and impressed upon her children the 
indelible -tamp of her own high qualit 
Mr. and Mr- Baker were the parent- of -i\ 
children, Abigail, cl< Mary, the wife 

of Amos Berninger, of Lancaster, Hiiro 
\nn ; Josephine, wife of the subject; Linna 
ami Commodore. Mr-. Woods wa- a child 
of l>ut seven years when -he became a ■ 
dent of Kosciusko county. She wa- edu- 
cated in the public schools ami for a time 
was a teacher in the schools of Noble county. 
She i- a member of the Church of God at 

Indiana, and is active and • 
OUS in all good work-. She takes a deep in- 
terest in the temperance movement and is 
affiliated with the Woman's Christian Tem- 
perance I nion, She wa- president of the 



( DM I'l: \l>ll 1/ (>/• /UoCk'.ll'I!)-. 



567 



branch of this societj at Ligonier and lias 
delivered a number of lectures before differ 
cni bodies and distributed much literature. 
She acted as organizer of the woman's 
home missionary work in five counties in 
northern Indiana and is eminently fitted for 
leadership. As hostess of the Vawter Park 
hotel she has displayed to advantage her 
fine business qualifications and her efforts 
to please her patrons and contribute to their 
comforl have been notablj successful. 

Mr. and Mrs. \\ K have reared chil- 
dren who in former days added life and 
brightness to their home and in later years 
will no doubt tenderly care for their parents 
and minister in every way possible to their 
comfort and enjoyment, Marietta, the 
oldest, who was born October 15, [862, 
died in childhood; Eva, born June 1 4, [865, 
was educated at Syracuse, Indiana, and is 
now an able assistant to her mother; Terry, 
born April 24, [868, married Kate Umben 
hour, by whom he has two children, [osie 
Mildred and l.'>is Evelyn, and now has 
charge of the home farm; Charles A., whose 
birth occurred on the 15th of September, 
1874, received a superior education, having 
spent four years at the State University at 
Bloomington, Indiana, graduating with the 
class of [898; he afterwards taught one 
term of school, but is now engaged with the 
Inter-State [nsurance Company at [ndianap 
olis ; he married I I el en Marsh, who has pre 
sented him with a daughter, Man fose 
phine. 

Mr. Woods and wife enjoj the respect 
and friendship of their community in no 
small degree; surrounded as the) are by an 
intelligent class of people, the best of neigh- 
bors and the kindest of friends, the) can 
not but rejoice that their lots have been cast 



amid such pleasant and agreeable condi- 
tions. Their home is a quiet retreal where 
hospitalit) and good will reign supreme, and 
by their generous sympathies, genial man- 
ners and kindly dispositions, their circle of 
acquaintances has become greatl) enlarged, 
including the besl people in the community 
for mail) miles around. Although not iden- 
tified with any religious organization him- 
self, Mr. Woods is a friend of the church, 
supports it with his means and CO-operates 
with it and all other organizations having 
for their object the uplifting of humanity 
and the bettering of society. Politically he 
has always given loyal support to the Re- 
publican party, being content to support the 
nominees and let those who feel so inclined 
aspne to office. As a man and citizen he has 
an excellent reputation, being straightfor- 
ing arms for its heroes; history's pages may 
ward and honorable in all of his dealings 
and fully deserving the confidence reposed 

in him. 

■♦-►♦ — 

HENRY E. kl.VSI'A . 

The gentleman to whom attention is di- 
rected in this review is an individual who 
has attained pronounced prestige 1>\ reason 

of native and acquired ability, as also be- 
cause of his prominence in official position 
and high Standing in the domain of private 
citizenship. Mr. Kinsey is one ot the repre- 
sentative men of Plain township and for 
some years past has been prominently iden- 
tified with the industrial and business in- 
terests of Leesburg. lb- takes a deep and 
abiding interest in everything pertaining to 
die material advancement of the town and 
township and even enterprise intended to 



568 



COMPENDIUM OF BlOGRAl'llY. 



promote the advancement of Kosciusko 
county is sure t" receive his hearty sup- 
port. He :- raid a~ one of the pi 
citizens of the community in which lie lives 
ami the high respect in which he is held by 
all classes of people is a deserving compli- 
ment to an intelligent, broad-minded ami 
most worthy man. 

The subject's paternal grandfather, 
Francis A. Kinsey, was a native of the state 
of Delaware. In an early day he migrated 
to i Ihio and was there united in m.r 
!•• Esther trainer, who bore him ten chil- 
dren, of whom Benjamin D., father of Hen- 
■. I .. was the second in order of birth. 
After living in Ohio for a number of years 
he came t" Kosciusko county. Indiana, and 
settled in Clay town-hip, where he still re- 
sides, a- a successful tiller of the soil, hav- 
ing fn on his youth followed agricultural 
pursuits for a livelihood. 

Benjamin I >. Kinsey was born in Ohio 
and accompanied his parents to Kosciusko 
counts, where he worked for many years as 
rpenter ami builder, lie became very 
efficient at his trade and many of the frame 
dwellings, harn- and other buildings in 
Clay and adjacent town-hip- stand a- mon- 
uments to his -kill a> an architect ami me- 
chanic. 

When a young man Benjamin I >. Kin- 
sey married Miss Mary E. VV hard, a 

union which resulted in the birth of four 
children, namely: Henry F... of this sketch: 
Nellie, wife of George Irvine, a farmer and 
the present trustee of clay township; Clara 
I'., widow of the late Hiram Norris, and 
(liner P., an unmarried man who i- 
with his parents. Benjamin I ). Kins< 
one of the substantial citizens of his pan 
of the count v and has always sustained the 



reputation of an honest, upright man, who 

knowing his duty discharges the same with 

a resoluteness of purpose that wins the high 

1 of his neighbors and friends. He 

early impressed his individuality 

upon the community and. heartily seconded 

by the effort- of hi- g 1 wife, reared his 

children for stations of usefulness in the 
world. 

Henry E. Kinsey is a native of Koscius- 
ko county, horn upon the homestead in Clay 
township on the _^rd day of January. 1863. 
Reared amid the peaceful scenes of rural 
life, he gave his attention during his youth 
to tin if the fields and other dutii 

the farm and when old enough became .1 
pupil in the district schools near his father's 
dwelling place. IK- paid close and diligent 
attention t<> his duties and early in life 
there was enkindled in his mind a strong 
desire for knowledge ami an appreciation 

of the privileges which a g 1 education 

would bring to him. Sparing no reason- 
able effort to enlarge his mental horizon, 

■n led his classmates ami at the ag 
nineteen was sufficiently advanced t" 

--fully the required examination and 
obtain a license entitling him to teach in 
the public school- of Kosciusko county. 

Mr. Kinsey entered upon his work 
an instructor with the same trepidation 
which attends the majority of young teach- 
nd which is universal!) conceded to l»e 
one of the t'ir-t precursors of success in the 
management of pupils ami the directii 
their minds in the pathway of know!, 
His first attempt proving satisfactory in an 
eminent degree, induced him to continue in 
the profession, which he did for a perio 
twelve years. His frequent retentions mi 
line district was a compliment to his 



coMPExnir.u of biography 



569 



ability ami tact as an instructor and it was 
not long until he attained a reputation as 
one "f the ablest and most popular teachers 
in tin county. Meanwhile, with the laud- 
able desire to increase his scholastic knowl- 
edge and the better to prepare himself for 
successful work in the school room, he 
spent several of his vacations in the North- 
ern Indiana Normal University at Valpa- 
raiso. In that well known and popular in- 
stitution he made commendable progress in 
the various higher branches of learning, 
[laying special attention to mathematics, in 
which he developed great proficiency. Mak- 
ing a specialty of surveying and civil en- 
ginering, with the object in view of ulti- 
mately adopting that his life work, he took 
in addition to the regular course private in- 
structions under Professor M. E. Bogarte, 
one of the most profound mathematicians 
and civil engineers in the state. Thorough- 
ly lilted for surveying by mental discipline 
and sound professional training, he an- 
nounced himself in 1894 a candidate before 
the Republican convention for nomination 
as county surveyor. In addition to himself 
there were three other aspirants for the 
honor, but on the third ballot he led his com- 
petitors and became the accepted candidate. 
In the ensuing election Mr. Kinsey de- 
feated his opponent by a large majority and 
in the discharge of his official functions 
made such a creditable record that at the 
expiration of his term he was chosen his 
own successor without opposition. This 
was a most flattering compliment to his 
efficiency anil a testimony to his popularity 
with the people of the county irespective 
of party affiliations. Hi-- second term was 
eminently satisfactory to the public and he 
retired from the office with a record which 



compared favorably with that of any of his 
predecessors ami which proved him to have 
been one of the most efficient and faithful 
officials that ever served the people of Kos- 
ciusko county. 

Meantime Mr. Kinsey became a bene- 
dict, being united in marriage to .Miss Mat- 
tie Uplinger. daughter of Ezra W. Up- 
Imger, a native of Pennsylvania, but for 
many years an honored resident of this part 
of the state of Indiana. Immediately after 
Ins marriage Mr. Kinsey took possession of 
his father's farm in Clay township, which 
he cultivated until his election as county 
surveyor, spending the winter seasons teach- 
ing in the public schools. Upon his retire- 
ment from office in 1898 he entered into 
partnership with 1). II. Lessig, I). I\. 
Brown and I'. M. Thompson for the pur- 
pose of erecting a flouring-mill at Leesburg. 
This enterprise has proved financially suc- 
cessful beyond the expectations of the pro- 
moters and is now one of the best paying 
concerns of the kind in the county. Mr. 
Kinsey has given the mill his personal at- 
tention, besides being secretary, treasurer 
and general manager of the Leesburg Grain 
and Milling Company, which, in addition 
to the manufacture of flour, buys ami ships 
grain upon an extensive scale, affording a 
good and easily accessihle market for a large 
and prosperous section of the country. 

To Mr. Kinsey may aptly be applied the 
term "hustler." He has long been noted 
lor his remarkable energy which, combined 
with sound judgment, wise forethought and 
a keen, discriminating knowledge of affairs, 
makes him one of the most reliable and 
progressive business men in the town of 
his residence. He is a young man, but the 
wisdom he has displayed as an official and 



57° 



COMl'EXlUrM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



in the business and industrial w < >rl< 1 would 
be creditable to one many years his senior 
and of much larger experience. While ex- 
ercising prudence in the management of his 
own large interests, he has not been unmind- 
ful "i" the public good, materially and other- 
wise. It is a significant fact that ever since 
arriving at years of manhood he has advo- 
cated all measures calculated i" advance the 
enmity and develop its resources ami since 
becoming a resident of Leesburg his voice 
has been heard with no uncertain sound 
in advocating needed public improvements. 

Mr. Kinsey is an ardent supporter '•! 
the Republican party, tn which he has given 
much (if his energies and from which, as 
already stated, he has received mark- o\ 
favor. He enters into political work with 
;ne force and energy that characterize 
his efforts in business affairs, notwithstand- 
ing which he stands well with the opposi- 
tinii and numbers among his el"sest per- 
sonal friends and warmest admirers many 
who are as radically Democratic as he is 
Republican. Fraternall) he is a member of 
the M. idem Woodmen of America, aside 
from which he is nut connected with any 
secret or benevolent organization. In mat- 
ters religious he is bound by no church or 
creed, hut believes in the church as a 
moral and spiritual force and is a liberal 
contributor t" its maintenance. 

Mr. and Mis. Kinse) are well liked so- 
cially and move in the best of society in the 
town : j. With an ample com- 

petence, a comfortable home ami all the 
-ities and luxuries which uH'iie; 

e happih and contentedly 
.-•.ml i i pi 'tent influence in behalf of 

even ulated to promote thi 

cial and i immunitv. 



They have two bright children. Andre 
born March u. iN<«>. and Esther i'... whose 
birth occurred May 2, 1896. 



\\ II. MAM M< K >RE. 

Fame may look to the clash ■>! resound- 
ing arms for its heroes; history's pages may 
he filled with a record of the deeds of the 
great who have deluged the world with 
I, destroyed kingdoms, created dynas- 
ties and left their names as plague -i«>ts 
upon civilization's escutcheon; the poet may 
embalm in deathless song the short and 
simple annals of the poor; hut there have 

Few i" sound the praise of the brave 
and sturdy pioneer who among the truly 
great ami noble is certainly deserving of at 

a little space mi the categorj of the 
immortals. To him more than in any other 
is civilization indebted fur the brightest 

in its diadem, for it was he that 1 
the way ami acted as vanguard I'm" the 
might) army of progress that within the 
last century has conquered the wildei 
and transformed it into one of the fairest 
and nn ist enlightened of the American com- 
monwealth's domains. 

Nearly all the early pioneers of K 
county have rested from their lalxu-s 
and gone t" their reward, hut here and 
there a scattered few remain, honorable 
a former day ami generation, l>ent 
under time's autograph indelibly stamped 
upon their brows, hut still Sturd) and in- 
dependent of spirit as when in the 

• from the moorings of civili- 
zation and penetrated the w Is in quest 

of new hi lines and new destinies. Among 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



57i 



those who bore an active part in the pioneer 
period of this county is the well-known and 
venerated subject of this sketch, whom to 
know is to honor and respect. William 
Moore has lung been one of the highly es- 
teemed citizens of the township of his resi- 
dence ami it is with pleasure that the fol- 
lowing brief outline of his life and achieve- 
ments is accorded a place in this volume de- 
voted to a review of Kosciusko's representa- 
tive men. 

Mr. Moore was born May 1. 1825, and 
since his eleventh year has been living at or 
within a few miles of his present place of 
abode. His parents were among the coun- 
ty's early settlers, moving here in 1836, pur- 
chasing land from the government and bear- 
ing their share of the rough usages which it 
was the lot of the pioneers to experience. 
They finished their life work where they 
originally settled and with others of the 
early comers now rest from their labors in 
the peaceful sleep that knows no waking. Jo- 
seph and Patience Moore had six children. 
namely: Milton, deceased; Sarah, de- 
ceased: John A., a resident of Noble coun- 
ty; Maria, widow of Allen Richart, resid- 
ing in Turkey Creek township; Joseph, who 
lives in the county of Noble, and William, 
whose name introduces this sketch. 

As Mated in another paragraph, Will- 
iam Moore was a lad of eleven years when 
hi-, parents moved to the county of Kosci- 
usko. The countrj being new and the place 
on which the family settled unimproved, 
much hard labor fell to the boys as soon 
as they were old enough to be of any serv- 
ice, the subject bearing his full share of the 
common toil. What knowledge of bonk-; 
be received was acquired by a couple of 
months each year in the indifferent schools, 
35 



but by far the greater part of his education 
is of the stern, practical kind obtained in 
the rugged school of experience. He re- 
mained at home until bis mother's death 
and about the year 1850 began life for him- 
self as a farmer, a vocation to which he 
has since devoted his time and energies. 

Miss Catherine Weaver, the only child 
of Isaac and Elizabeth (Akers) Weaver, 
was born in Tippecanoe county. Indiana, on 
the 27th day of February, 1831. Her par- 
ents were early settlers of Kosciusko coun- 
ty, both living to a ripe old age, the father 
having been three times married. Miss 
Weaver and William Moore were made hus- 
band and wife on the 4th of March. 1852, 
and they set up their first domestic estab- 
lishment on a farm in Turkey Creek town- 
ship, which Mr. Moore and his brother had 
purchased in partnership some time before. 
Later the subject bought his brother's in- 
terest and has made the place his home 
ever since. It is now one of the finest and 
most highly improved farms in the town- 
ship, containing a beautiful and commo- 
dious residence, large barn, good outbuild- 
ings with fences and other accessories in 
keeping therewith, the prosperous condition 
of the place indicating the home of an intel- 
ligent, enterprising and successful tiller of 
the soil. This farm is admirably situated 
in one of the most beautiful and attractive 
sections of Kosciusko county, the noted sum- 
mer resort. "Wawasee," being a pan of 
the original place. Mr. Moore sold this 
portion of the farm in [879 and the pro- 
prietors have since made it one of the favor- 
ite resorts of summer tourists in northern 
Indiana. 

Mi-. Moore has been engaged in gen- 
eral farming for a number of years, but 



572 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



at present 'lot-- little besides managing his 
nterests and look after his 
other large business affairs. lie has i 

i" fine li\ e >t"ck and dealt ex- 
tensively in real estate, owning at this time 
over seven hundred acres in this county, 
al liable property in the town of Syra- 
cuse ;'ii<i a i"me farm of one hundred and 

sixty acres in \V Ibury county, Iowa. 

Mr-. Moore ha- considerable land in the 
counties of Kosciusko and Noble, and 
gether the famih i- remarkably well situ- 
.11 the way of material wealth. Mr. 
Iways been successful in busi- 
ness, honorable and upright in his dealings, 
with much more than local reputation a- an 
enterprising and progressive man of affairs. 
Mi- judgment i- sound and discrimin 
his insight shrewd and penetrating and his 
integrity of that lofty kind that disdains an) - 
narrow and recoils from transactions 
in the slightest degree questionable. Back 
i if these and other qualities equally admir- 
able i e fund "f g 1 common 

which he manifests in all of his undertak- 
ings and shines with peculiar luster in his 
dailj life a- a neighbor and citizen. 

Mr Moore ha- given loyal support t'> 
the Republican part) ever since it- organiza- 
tion and it is a fact worth) of note that 
all ol - and sons-in-law subscribe to 

1'iie political creed that hi - In 

lie i- well real and for 
a number of year- ha- been an humbli 

i member of the Church of God, his 
wife ging t" the same body of 

wi »rshi| 

Mr. and Mr-. Moore are the parents 
YV. died when <. 
een n Id; Joseph married Mai . 

lives in this c< >untv : f ■ »lm F. 



i- a married man and lives in the county 
N'oble; Mary I'... wife of John F. kiddle, 
m Kosciusko county; William I., 
a farmer of this county, married Anna Mc- 
Mann: Martha J., now Mrs. Francis M. 
• »tt. wh<> lives in the town of Syracuse; 
the other two, twin-, died in infancy. 

In the foregoing brief review only jar- 
tial justice has been * rendered to one 
Kosciusko county'- oldest and most worthy 
citizens. To write in detail a full account 
of hi> long and useful life would require 
a much more elaborate article than the na- 
ture of the work admits or requires. Suffi- 
iit has been said, however, to form a 
reel conception of the man and his 
reer, a career affording many valuable 
is to the young of the rising generation. 



FRANCIS MARION OTT. 

Francis M. Ott, proprietor of the most 
sive lumber and planing-mill in north- 
ern Indiana, situated at Syracuse, Koscius- 
iunty, was horn in Elkhart county, this 
-t tte ber -•-'. 1858, ai 5 »n of 

Samuel and Rebecca 1 Van Asdal ) < >tt. who 
came from Ohio some years before their 
son, Francis M.. was born, and settled on 
a farm in Elkhart county, two and one-half 
north of S which lies but a 

-hort distance south of the boundary line 
letweea the two counties I > ->■ parents 
are now living in retirement in the village 
of Syt the father being seventy years 

old, 1 xty-eight, and among the 

most highly respected elderly persons r< 
r north or smith of the line. 
Francis M. ( >tt remained on the he 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



573 



farm until twenty years of age, when he be- 
gan to buy standing timber, which lie hired 
sawed at local mills and afterward disposed 
of at a profit until he acquired funds suffi- 
cient i" purchase a mill for himself. He 
handled walnut and cherry chiefly, person- 
ally selecting the trees all through the sur- 
rounding country and at times sold the 
sawed cherry as high as ninety dollars per 
thousand feet, but the demand for cherry 
long since ceased to be of any importance 
in the lumber markets and the feeling ol it 
may lie considered a thing of the past un- 
less a change takes place in the popular 
taste or fancy for the lumber in the manu- 
facture of furniture, etc.. for which it is 
well adapted. 

Mr. ( )tt had accumulated considerable 
cash when he purchased his mill and paid 
for the greater part of it at once, but it 
required about seven years to pay off the 
indebtedness incurred for the balance and 
the many improvements introduced by him- 
self. It was about the year 1880 when Mr. 
Ott invested twenty-six hundred dollars in 
this property: it is now worth ten thousand 
dollars and over. Air. Ott also owns an 
entire section of land, on which he grows 
the timber for the mill, in the sawing and 
planing of which he employs at all times 
fifteen hands, and very often ten to fifteen 
extras, and thirteen mules are in constant 
use. The capacity of the mill is twelve 
thousand feet per day. Circular saws are 
used and are driven by steam from two 
thirty-five horse-power engines fed from 
one boiler, the capacity of the mill being 
double that which it had at the start. The 
machinery and implements are all of modem 
and up-to-date patterns. The business done 
i^ principally that of filling orders, car work 



being a specialty, and the woods used are 
chiefly red and white oak, but elm and maple 
are also employed and the business done 
amounts to about twenty-five thousand dol- 
lars per annum. Mr. ( )tt purchases stand- 
ing timber within a radius of about nine 
miles of the mill, often investing twenty- 
five hundred dollars in one purchase, and 
at present has six thousand dollars so in- 
vested. As a rule these purchases are made 
in order to fill contracts made in advance to 
supply dressed lumber. 

Mr. Ott is very public spirited and does 
a great deal toward enhancing the value of 
village lots by improving them with neat 
and comfortable cottages and other build- 
ings, thus making Syracuse a desirable resi- 
dence place. He has now fourteen such 
houses scattered throughout the village, and 
as he has lost no money through such in- 
vestments, he still continues to make them. 
That he is kind and generous, however, out- 
side of any scheme for making money for 
himself, is shown by the fact that in build- 
ing houses he furnishes employment to 
many mechanics, and it may further be 
stated that several of his mill hands have 
been in his employment for fourteen years 
consecutively, many others also having 
worked for him for long periods. 

The marriage of Mr. Ott took place 
about twenty years since to Miss Mattie 
Moore, and to this congenial union have 
been born four children, namely; Lina, 
Willie, Mary and Clifford, all of whom are 
still under the parental roof. Mr. and Mrs. 
Ott are members of the Church of God at 
Syracuse, and the children have been or are 
being reared in the same faith. In politics 
Mr. ( )tt is a Republican. 

Francis M. Ott has shown himself to 



574 



MPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



be one of the most enterprising business 

men of northern Indiana and a man of nat- 
urally sound judgment and shrewd percep- 
tion. He has risen through his strictly 
mural habits, his attention to business and 
hi- desire t" please his patrons by prompt- 
in filling orders and by always fur- 
nishing strictly sound and reliable material. 
and hi- name stands high to-day for integ- 
rity in all business circles with which he 
has come into relationship, His domestic 
and social connections are of the most pleas- 
ant character, and the fact that his sur- 
roundings are such a> to make life enjoy- 
able is due solel) to his individual merits, 
hi- affable and courteous treatment of others 
and hi> strict adherence to justice in all his 
deal i ■ 



RICHARD GUY. 

'The gentleman whose name introduces 
this article is one of Kosciusko county's 
young, energetic and enterprising men. a na- 
tive born tndianian, having first seen the 
lighl of da) V.pril io, i860, on the farm in 
Turkey Creek township which he now owns 
ami cultivates. The parents from whom he 
is descended were Andrew and Rel 
(Stuard) Guy, natives of < >1 1 i< • and Indi- 
ana respectively, the former lw.rn in 1821 
and the latter in the year [828. \ndrevv 
Guy came from Ohio to Kosciusko county. 
Indiana, and with his parents. Andrew and 
Eliza (Lockridge) Guy, when about < 
<>r twelve years old and spent the remainder 
of his life in this part of ti His 

parei • >f Virginia and 

settlers of Ohio and ma\ also tx 
with the pioneers of Kosciusko county. 



They had six children: Sarah. Wilson, 
Andrew, Samuel. William and Harvey. 

Andrew Guy, Jr., father of the subject, 
was a farmer and in many respect a most 
exemplary and praiseworthy citizen. I le- 
st ! high in the esteem of his neighbors 

and friends, was for many years a leading 

member of the German Baptist church and 

took an active interest in political affairs 

Republican, lie was twice married, 

his first wife, formerly a Mi~s Bowers, liv- 
ing after a brief wedded life, leaving one 
daughter, Emeline. By his second com- 
panion. Rebecca Stuard. he had the follow- 
ing children : Charity A., deceased. Janiza. 
Richard. George, deceased, and Anna. 

Richard Guy, the subject proper of this 
review, was reared on the farm, educated in 
the public schools, ami has always followed 
the pursuit of agriculture for a livelihood. 
After completing the common-school course 
he entered the high school at Syracuse, 
where he prosecuted the more advanced 
branches for some years thus acquiring a 

g 1 mental discipline which has enabled 

him to meet life's duties manfully and tran- 
iis business affairs with promptness 
and dispatch. 

Mr. Guy was married March 17. 1 889, to 
Miss [da Strieby, whose birth occurred in 
Turkey (reek township on the 9th day of 
NTovember, [867. .Mis Guy is the daugh- 
ter of John 1'.. and Delilah (Cable) I Strieby 
.Mid the oldest of a family of four children, 
the names of the other three being Floyd, 
Alphretta and John 1-'. The Striebys were 
among the early settlers of Kosciusko coun- 
ty, and always bore enviable reputations. 
Mis. Guy is a lad) ^i sound, practical sense 
and varied ii e, well qualified ' 

>uch a stirrii ; 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



575 



band, and is popular with a large circle of 
the best people of her neighborhood. She 
has been her husband's active co-laborer 
and. besides presiding- with ease and becom- 
ing dignity over bis household, has contrib- 
uted not a little to his success by her wise 
counsel in matters of business and other af- 
fairs in which they are mutually interested. 

Since his marriage Mr. Guy has devoted 
his attention assiduously to farming and 
to-day has one of the best improved and 
most fertile, as well as one of the most valu- 
able, places of its area within the limits of 
Turkey Creek township. It contains one 
hundred and seventeen acres, one hundred 
of which were originally included in the 
paternal homestead and the extra seventeen 
came to him by his wife. The buildings are 
substantial and sufficiently spacious to meet 
all purposes for which intended, the dwell- 
ing being well constructed and amply fur- 
nished, the barn and other structures com- 
paring with the best buildings of their kind 
in the neighborhood. 

Mr. Guy brought to his lifework a phy- 
sique well developed by healthful outdoor 
labor and exercise and a mind of which 
self-reliance, strong will power and a proper 
respect for the rights of others are promi- 
nent characteristics. He cultivates the soil 
according to modern scientific methods, uses 
in his labors the best and most approved 
implements and devices and makes agri- 
culture an intellectual discipline as well as 
a series of physical efforts. Financially his 
success has been most gratifying, being the 
possessor of a competence which places him- 
self and family in a position of independence 
as far as any anxiety for the future is con- 
cerned. 

Mr. Guv has displayed a commendable 



public spirit in relation to the affairs of his 
township and county, standing for progress 
and improvement and ready to lend his in- 
fluence at all times to further enterprises 
calculated to advance the country along ma- 
terial lines and develop its resources. In 
all tilings he is an up-to-date man, believ- 
ing in getting all out of life there is in it. 
He has done much in the way of beautify- 
ing bis borne, as the well-kept lawns, tine 
gardens, neat shade trees and other access- 
ories of modern life abundantly demonsrate, 

g 1 taste as well as thrift being one of bis 

predominant characteristics. In politics Mr. 
Guy is a pronounced champion of Repub- 
lican principles, believing the policy of the 
partv relative to all great questions to be 
for the best interests of the American peo- 
ple. He has never aspired to leadership in 
bis party nor asked for honors or emolu- 
ments of office at the bands of his fellow 
citizens, being content to vote his sentiments 
and work with the rank and hie. Person- 
ally he is a popular man and the name of 
bis friends is legion. He has shown him- 
self worthy of this friendship, his integrity 
having never been assailed nor the correct- 
ness of his motives called in question. 

Mr. and Mrs. Guy's home is made bright 
by the presence of an interesting daughter 
of eleven summers. Miss Alda, who was 
l>orn on the 23rd day of July. [891. Mr. 
Guv has an obi parchment deed, bearing 
the date of March 15. 1837. and the sig- 
nature of Martin Van Buren. 



JOHN* STETTLHR. Deceased. 

With pleasure the biographer essays the 

task of noting the salient points in the ca- 
reer of this honorable and honored gentle- 



576 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



man, a man who during his residence in 
this community merited and received the 
highest respect and esteem of hi- acquaint- 
ances. A man of honest motives, purest 
purpose and kindliest feeKngs toward all, 
he made and retained for himself a host of 
friends. 

John Stettler began his mercantile ca- 
reer in Syracuse in 1S74 in company with 
his wife's brother, Joe Kindig. The latter 
had been in business for some years prior 
to this time at the old store known as the 
Bee I live and afterward at the corner where 
William Strieby is now located. In 1878 
Mr. Stettler became sole proprietor of the 
business, bul later Professor Dalons was in- 
terested with him for a few months. Mr. 
Strieby entered the store as a clerk and later 
Mr. Stettler sold him a half interest in the 
business. Mr. Stettler retained his interest 
in the business until his death, after which 
his widow disposed of it to Mr. Miller, of 

the firm of Strieby & Miller. The concern 
did a fine business, having been favored with 
a steady and healthy growth from the 1k.'- 
ginning. Joe Kindig, who retired from the 
partnership about [878, went to Goshen, 

where he conducted a drug st.. re. Later he 

removed to Milford and there died about 
twelve yrears ago. During his active career 
the subject gave th< I bis at- 

tention to the mercantile business, also in- 
vesting quite largely in farm land. How- 
ever his attention was not given exclusively 
t.. business and he kept in touch with the 
varied interests of the community at lai 
This was evidenced by his service in the 
state legislature, to which he was el 
the nominee of the Republican party in 
iSi| and 1896. In that body he served 
with distinction and achieved an enviable 



record for his broad and comprehensive 
grasp of all questions affecting the public 

welfare. He was very firm in his views and 
earnest in his advocacy of measures meet- 
ing with his approval. He had Keen reared 
a Democrat, but, with three of his brothers, 
always affiliated with the Republican party. 
1 if the five brothers, three served in the 
Civil war. one. Ira. losing his life in the 
struggle. 

Mrs. Stettler. wife of the subject of this 
memoir, is a daughter of Samuel and Re- 
becca (Anstine) Kindig, early settlers in 
York county.. Pennsylvania. In 1857 the 
Kindig family came to Goshen, Indiana, and 
1 the same year came to Syracuse, the father 
passing away about four years later. The 
Stettlers were affiliated with the English 
Lutheran church in later years. Mrs. St< 
ler and her mother being among the first 
members of the Lutheran society in Syra- 
cuse. The latter took an especial interest 
in her church. yi\ ins-i '" " regularly one- 
tenth of her income. She died June 28, 
[892, at the age of seventy-five years and 

1 me week. 

Fraternally Mr. Stettler was affiliated 
with the Mas, , us. having joined that fra- 
rnity at Goshen, Indiana, ami for the long 
period of twenty years was worshipful mas- 
ter of Syracuse Lodge No. 454. E 

tr he was an attendant at the sessions ,,1 
the grand lodge. An old s, .idier. he at- 
tended the national encampment of the 
Grand Army of the Republic held at 1 
lumbus, Ohio, and kept in touch with his 
old comrades at the reunions of his p 
ment. He was an omnivorous reader and 
kept in touch with all the leading 1 
of the dav . 

Tin- elegant brick house in which Mrs. 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



577 



Stettler now resides was erected thirteen 
years ago on the site of her mother's former 
home, to which she was brought when but 
eleven years old. Previous to her marriage 
to the subject she had wedded Martin Wey- 
bright, a German Baptist minister, and re- 
sided with him upon a large farm two and 
a half miles from Syracuse. She always 
maintains a clo.se interest in her church and 
assists in whatever way possible in its up- 
building and advancement. 



ANDREW EDMONDS. 

The following life story is worth the 
perusal of every youth, the history of this 
man's endeavors w : ell illustrating Benjamin 
Franklin's words, "God helps them that 
help themselves." Andrew Edmonds, one 
of the substantial citizens of Kosciusko 
county and one whose success is distinctly 
the result of his own efforts, was born in 
Sweden, July 2, 1848. He received a good 
education, attending not only the common 
schools but also the Skara high school, 
where he took a literary course. His studies 
in history aroused military and patriotic 
feelings within him, which let! him to read 
with great interest the accounts of the Civil 
war in the United States. With a strong 
desire for adventure and full of the hopes 
of youth, he determined to come to this 
country and left school for that purpose 
with one year of the course unfinished. 
This move was made with his parents' con- 
sent and their kindness and the confidence 
thev had in their son is shown by their giv- 
ing him five hundred dollars tor this, his 
first journey m the world. Accompanied 
by a classmate, he landed in New York, at 



the age of twenty. September 19, 1868. 
From New York he went to Paxton, Illi- 
nois, where he secured work at cutting 
broom corn. His previous life having been 
that of a student and he therefore being 
little used to manual labor, this work proved 
too hard for him and he set about to learn 
the cigarmaker's trade. In company with 
the classmate, who still remained with him, 
he soon bought a cigar store, but within 
three months this venture had failed be- 
cause his partner, who was salesman on the 
road, did not discriminate in customers and 
many accounts could not be collected. They 
left Paxton for Chicago, arriving there with 
only one dollar and a half between them; 
but the)- started out bravely and found a 
boarding house and when the landlord 
learned their straitened circumstances he 
agreed to keep them until thev could get 
\vi >rk. Three months later Andrew was 
employed with the Rock Island -Railroad 
Company in the construction of its road 
in Iowa, where he worked for a year. The 
first money he received was sent t< 1 pay the 
board bill due the kind-hearted landlord in 
Chicago, and thus early in his career did 
honesty, one of the principles which has led 
to his success, appear. With his knowledge 
of geometry and other branches of mathe- 
matics, the duties of civil engineer were soon 
familiar to him. making him a valuable as- 
sistant, working for various contractors, 
sometimes as foreman or as timekeeper, and 
in many states, including Kansas. Missouri, 
Iowa, Michigan, Illinois and Indiana. This 
wandering life brought him many hard ex- 
periences, but as the bitter must always be 
mixed with the sweet, so he found main- 
pleasures with change of scene and new ac- 
quaintances. 






COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



In 1874, having saved money enough to 
take him to his old home in Sweden, he 
a year in visiting the scenes and 
friends of his youth. He found his 

nates prosperous and holding respon- 
sible positions, and 1 1 1 i — ■ determined him to 
return to America to make a better showing 
i'<>r hi- own life endeavors, lie had 
to Kosciusko county with the buildii 
the Baltimore <.V 1 Hiio Railroad in 1873, and 
had charge of some of the work between 
the villages of Syracuse and Cromwell, In- 
diana. Upon returning from Sweden, in 
[875, he again came to this vicinity and. 
though having hut thirty dollars in money 
he invested it in a field of wheat. Tin 
failed and he realized from it hut fifteen dol- 
lars, hall of hi- investment, hi- first venture 
thus proving a failure. He was not the 
kind of a man to he discouraged by the fail- 
ure of a rop of wheat, his energy 
leading him to take jobs of ditching and 
clearing land. Making some progress, he 
1.. get "in railroad ties and lumber 
some four mile- ea-t of Syracuse, a busi- 
ivhich proved profitable and at which 
ntinued until the timber was exhausted. 
Having saved some money, he invested in 
land which he partially cleared and im- 
proved by the erection of buildings, ami 
which he then sold. This process was re- 
peated until he had cleared about three hun- 
dred acre-. He now owns the third farm 
thus developed, which contain- eighty 

With the determination to win and the 
opportunity for endeavor, success crowned 
hi- efforts. He took advantage of the con- 
dition of the country, which, being low and 
marshy, had to I*.- drained before it v. 
for cultivation, and laid extensive timber 
ditches, thus enhancing the value of the 



farm- is In- 1 r» 11. As a 

farmer he ha- been eminently successful. 
Hi- farm, lying three and one-half miles 
ea-t of Syracuse, i- a first-class one. with 
good huiI nd it- cultivation has yield- 

ed him a handsome return. He has taken 
commendable pride in the breeding of tine 
stock, for which he ha- always found ample 
demand and ready -ale. He ha- fed cattle. 
Derations in this line having required 
the control of several hundred acre- at a 
time, which he has done by renting land 
near his own. Among the element- contrib- 
uting to hi- success were hi- ability for hard 
work and the foresight to intelligently con- 
duct hi- business. Hi- perseverance i- one 
of the line trait- of his character: if one 
venture failed, without loss of courage he 
tried another. He ha- proven that man 
is not ruled by the circumstances of his 
life if he wills to l>e master of them. 

On the 25th of December, 1879, ^' r - 
Edmonds was married to Angeline Suavely. 
daughter of Samuel and Rebecca Suavely, 
of Turkey Creek township. After \e 

attention to the detail- of the farm, on 
account of the failure of Mrs. Edmond's 
health, the) moved to their plea-ant village 
in Syracuse, where they are enjoying 
a quiet life and the well-earned fruit- of 
their labor. Hut one child lived to maturity. 
Myron H.. who i- now a young man of 
twenty. He was educated in the schools 
of Syracuse and i- now employed in the 
cement work-. 

In 1870, in Butler county, Kansas, when 
that country wa- being settled, Mr. Ed- 
monds, in company with three other young 
men. took a homestead with the intention 
of receiving naturalization paper-, hut the 
crops failed ami he gave up hi- interest 






COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



579 



Later, in Warsaw, lie applied for and re- 
ceived the papers which made him a citizen 
of the United States. When a student in 
the schools of Sweden his admiration for 
Lincoln led him to accept the principles of 
that administration and as a citizen of the 
United States he naturally affiliated with 
the political party representing those prin- 
ciples. He has never sought public office, 
but has been busy with the duties of a 
private citizen. He is the present chancellor 
commander of Kosciusko Lodge No. 230. 
K. P., in Syracuse, which lodge is in a 
thrifty condition, having fifty active mem- 
bers. He also belongs to the Masonic fra- 
ternitv, holding membership in Lodge No. 
454 and the chapter at Syracuse. 

Mrs. Edmonds is a member of the Evan- 
gelical Association, he being in sympathy 
with the organization and rendering finan- 
cial and mi iraJ support. 

A summary of this man's life bespeaks 
for him these words of praise: He is a fine 
example of the honest, educated and pro- 
gressive foreigner, whose wide experience 
in travel and the ways of men have brought 
him in close touch with American ideas, 
making him a genial companion and an al- 
together popular citizen. 



NATHANIEL CROW. 

Among the few gray-haired pioneers of' 
Kosciusko county who are left to weave the 
thread of personal incident with the fabric 
of historic fact, whose lives have been in- 
separably connected with the rise and 
growth of the country from the time the 
country was a wilderness to the present 



time of wonderful achievement in all av- 
enues 1 if civilization and enlightenment, the 
name of the venerable gentleman whose 
name appears above is conspicuous. Na- 
thaniel Crow is to-day one of the oldest 
citizens of the count v in point of continuous 
residence. 

Originally the Crows came from Ireland 
and settled in Virginia, the head of the 
family in this county being Thomas Crow. 
the subject's grandfather, who was a native 
of the Emerald Isle. The date of his ar- 
rival is not known, but from most reliable 
information at hand it appears to have been 
some years prior to the war of the Revolu- 
tion. Among the descendants of Thomas 
Crow was a son by the name of Joseph, 
whose birth occurred in Virginia and who 
in a very early day accompanied his parents 
to Ohio, where he subsequently married 
Martha Hull. Shortly after marriage he 
settled in the county of Champaign, Ohio, 
and there followed agricultural pursuits un- 
til his death, which took place a number 
of years ago. Some years after his decease 
his widow l^ecame the wife of Joseph Long- 
fellow, she and her second husband both 
living to be quite old. By Mr. Crow she 
had children as follows: Ezekiel H.. Su- 
sanna, James, Thomas D. and Nathaniel. 
The second marriage resulted in the birth 
of six descendants. William. Lemuel Y., 
Nathan M.. David S.. Silas N. and Amos M. 

Nathaniel Crow, of this review, was 
born in Champaign county. Ohio, on the 
13th day of October. 1823. His childhood 
and youth to the age of sixteen were spent 
on his father'^ homestead and as opportu- 
nit\ afforded he attended a few months of 
the winter seasons the subscription schools 
of his native county, acquiring a fair know]- 



580 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



edge of the fundamental branches, spelling, 
reading, arithmetic and writing. About the 
year 1839 he left home and went to Madi- 
son county, < >hi". where he worked as a 
farm hand the greater part of the six years 
following, when he left hi* native state and 
came to Kosciusko county, Indiana, arriv- 
ing here sometime in [845. Desiring to 
procure a piece of land and not having 
money sufficient t" purchase, Mr. Crow 
made a proposition t" exchange hi- horse, 
saddle and bridle for the eighty acre- he 
wished to | The trade was finally 

consummated l>y the subject paying twenty 

dollars additional and he thus came in pos- 

ision of one of the finest tracts of land of 

it- size in the township of Van P.uren. Mr. 
Crow did not settle on this land nor im- 
prove it. but held it for some year- and then 
sold it for a good price, investing the pro- 
ceeds in the farm in section -'4. Turkey 
ek township, on which he ha- lived ever 
since. On the 14th day of October, 1852, 
he entered into the marriage relation in 

Elkhart county with Miss Eliza Airg 1. 

who was born in Germany, September 13, 
[832, and came v > the United State- with 
her parents, Frederick and Maria Airgood, 
when a -mall child. 

Mr Cro« immediately after marriage 
in. >k hi- bride t" the farm where he now 
live- am! together they began life's struggle 
under circumstances by no mean- the n 
encouraging. Hi- land was unimproved 
and required an immense amount of hard 
labor to prepare it for cultivation, and for 
some years obstacles numerous and at times 
quite formidable beset hi- pathwaj I 
-tant and well-directed labor finally : 
vailed and in the course "t" several years the 
f the place was cleared and 



in cultivation, better buildings took the 

of the firmer log structures and the 
original eighty-acre tract wa- gradually in- 
creased in area until it included several ad- 
ditional pieces of land contiguous thereto. 
Mr. (.Vow wa- a ^.»d manager and by 
carefully laying his plans, became in time 

f the largest real estate owner- in his 
township. He watched for favorable op- 
portunities to make investments and seldom 
allowed one to go by unimproved if he was 
in any way prepared to take advantage of 
it. By judiciously managing hi- farm lie 
came to realize quite a lilieral income, which 

exchanged for real estate whene 
neighbor wished to disjxwe of his land. He 
continued to add to hi- possessions a- the 
years went by until his estate was incr< 
to it- present area of five hundred and fifty 

of tine fertile land, every foot of which 
was purchased with money earned by him- 
self. 

Few men circumstanced a- wa- Mr. 
(row when lie came to Kosciusko county 
have overcome the obstacles in their path- 
way, risen superior to unfavorable environ- 
ment ami accumulated a fortune as he has 
done. Hi- business abilities have certainly 
been of a superior order and hi- judgment 
and forethought of that high type which 
grasp a situation easily and seldom if ever 
are at fault. In the work and management 
<•;' hi- farm he has been industrious and 
Systematic and in all of hi- dealings. 
straightforward and the soul of honor. It 
must not he inferred from the foregoing 
reference to hi- success in material things 

\ ha- been indifferent I 

fairs pertaining to the public good of his 
town-hip and county, for such is far from 
the cas< From the beginning of bis 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



581 



reer in this county his voice and influence 
have ever been used to advance the material 
interests of the country and develop its re- 
sources and. as stated in the initial para- 
graph of this sketch, his name has been in- 
separably identified with the rise and prog- 
ress of his community tor a period of over 
a half century. 

Mr. Crow's nature has heen a persever- 
ing and indomitable one and he has sturdily 
held to his course in spite of lets and hin- 
drances. Obstacles he has encountered and 
some of his best achievements have been 
wrested from conditions insuring- almost 
certain defeat to one less courageous and 
resolute. Ability to successfully meet all 
emergencies has been <>ne of his chief char- 
acteristics and now from the topmost round 
it; the ladder of success be can look back 
over a well-spent life and see in the various 
objects calculated to hinder and impede his 
progress the real tests of growth and man- 
hood. Such a record as he has made, both 
as a pr'i (gressive farmer and enterprising, 
wide-awake citizen, stands to his perpetual 
honor and will continue to do so long after 
the last of the brave army of pioneers has 
answered the final roll call and joined the 
ranks of the larger and grander army of 
honorable men and true who have fought 
life's battles, won victories and passed to 
their reward. 

Eight children have been born to Na- 
thaniel and Eliza Crow, of whom but two 
are living: Xellie. who married (leorge 
Dull and resides in the old homestead, and 
Mattie M., who is still with her parents; 
the following are the names of those de- 
ceased: George \\ '.. Sarah J.. Benjamin 
I!.. Lucy A.. Charles S. and Nathaniel L. 



DAVIS TEEPLE. 

If one desires to gain a vivid realization 
of the rapid advance in the civilization 
which the last few decades have brought, he 
can listen to the stories that men who are 
still living among us and by no means over- 
burdened with the weight of years can tell 
of their early experiences when the country 
was new and social conditions in this part 
of the Hoosier state were in their formative 
period. The little town of Milford is now 
the abiding place of a number of old set- 
tlers who. having spent the vigor and 
strength of their manhood in carving from 
the wilderness homes for themselves and 
their posterity, are now in the evening of 
life, when the shadows are growing dim 
and the past gradually receding from view, 
spending their declining years in rest and 
quiet, surrounded by neighbors and friends 
who honor and revere them for the good 
work they did in laying broad and deq) the 
foundation upon which the community's 
prosperity has been builded. Conspicuous 
among these silver-haired veterans of a 
period long past is the venerable and highly 
respected citizen, now living a life of hon- 
orable retirement, to a brief review of whi >-e 
career the following lines are devoted. 

Davis Teeple is a native of Washington 
county, Pennsylvania, where his birth oc- 
curred on the 6th day of April, 1831. His 
parents, Peter and Peggy 1 Fleming 1 
Teeple. also natives of the above county and 
state, were among the early settlers of 
Stark counts. I >hio, moving there when the 
subject was a small child. In the year [838 
they came to Kosciusko county, Indiana, 
and purchased a tract of gfovernment land 



5*- 



COMl'EXPICM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



in Jefferson township, from which in due 
time a farm was developed; upon which 
they spent the remaining years of their Ii 
l»>th dying after reaching a ripe old age. 
Davis and Peggj Teeple had eleven chil- 
dren, whose names are a- follows: Belia 
S.. John, Joseph, Isaac, Rebecca, David, 
ah. Catherine, Benton, Martha ami Me- 
lissa. 

i- Teeple, the direct subject of this 
review, was reared on a farm ami from 
early boyhood followed agriculture for a 
livelihood. In a little log cabin, spars< 
furnished with backless benches ami a rough 
ln.aril around the wall for a desk, he ob- 
tained a meager knowledge of the funda- 
mental branches, hi- education such as it 
\\a^ being acquired under many adverse cir- 
cumstances. Methods <>f instruction at that 
time were of the most primitive character. 
teachers being required to impart to the pu- 
pils under their charge but a smattering of 
the three fundamentals, "readin", ritin' and 
'rithmetic." Young Teeple availed himself 
of such opportunities as presented them- 
selves, hut did not lony attend school, his 
services as soon as he was old and strong 

enough being required on the farm. 

Mr. Teeple was seven years old when 
his parents moved to the new home in the 
new and sparsely settled township of Jef- 
ferson and from that time to the present, a 
period of sixty-four \ears. he has been an 
honored and respected citizen of Kosciusko 
county, actively interested in the growth and 
development of the county and in every re- 

t an enterprising and bus) man of af- 
fairs, lie assisted his father until attain- 
ing his majority and at intervals for several 
years thereafter contributed to the family's 
support b) working at home and by turn- 



ing over his earnings to the common fund 
when laboring elsewhere. < >n the 22nd day 
Ictober, 1857, he was joined in the 
lends of wedlock with Miss Martha 
Hughes, a native of this count) ami daugh- 
ter of Thomas ami Pegg) Hughes, who 

among the early pioneers of this part 
of the state. Shortly after his marriage 
he moved to a farm in the township of Jef- 
ferson, which he had purchased in 1854, the 
land at that time being an unbroken forest. 
from which hardly a stick of timber had been 
removed. 

Blessed with good health and rug 
physique, he set manfully to work t. 
his place and in due time his labors were 
rewarded, the forest growth gradually dis- 
appearing before his strons; strokes, and 
within a few years the wilderness gave place 
to a verv garden of plenty. Here Mr. 
I ceple spent the best and. in mam respects, 
the happiest years of his life. He devel- 
oped one of the finest and most valuable 
firms in the community and as a tiller of 

■il achieved a reputation such as few 
attain. Industrious and economical, he 
prospered when many failed and as the years 
went by found himself the possessor of a 
competence which placed him • in independ- 
ent circumstances. He continued to pi 
cute his labors wuh liberal financial results 
until [890, iii which year he turned h 
ricultural interests over to other hands and 
look up his resilience in the beautiful little 
town of Mil ford, where he has since lived 
a life of retirement. 

In common with the major part of poor 
humanity. Mr Teeple' S pathway h.. 
times led through sorrows and the deep 
waters of bereavement. On the 13th of 
June. [887, his faithful wife, who had 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



533 



shared with him the vicissitudes and hard- 
ships <>f life and later rejoiced with him in 
the success which crowned their mutual 
labors, was called to the other world. Sub- 
sequently, May (), 1890. he chose for a com- 
panion Susan Bortz, who was horn in Mar- 
shall county, Indiana, July 24, 1842. the 
daughter of Michael and Catherine (Clark) 
Bortz. These parents were early settlers 
of Marshall ci lunty and lived there a num- 
ber of years, later moving to the county of 
Kosciusko, where the father died Septem- 
ber 15, 1880, at the age of eighty-seven, 
and the mother, February 7, 1892, when 
eighty-five years old. They had a family of 
eleven children, viz. : Benjamin, Harriet, 
Marvann. Levi. Daniel, Susan, John. Han- 
nah, James, Sarah and one that died be- 
fore receiving a name. Neither of Mr. 
Teeple's marriages resulted in offspring. 
Xot being blessed with children of his own, 
he has always been mindful of the children 
of others and in many ways has demonstrat- 
ed bis interest by kindly acts of benevolence 
and charity to worthy families in needy cir- 
cumstances. He has been liberal in the ex- 
penditure of his means to promote all 
worthy objects and by actions as well as by 
words has done much to advance the ma- 
terial and moral interests of the town of 
which he is an honored and enterprising 
resident. With prudent forethought, he ac- 
cumulated a liberal share of this world's 
wealth, owning at the present time a finely 
improved farm of 011c hundred and thirty- 
six acres in this county, a number of lots 
m Milford, besides a valuable personal 
property and ,1 handsome bank account. 
Mrs. reeple has a farm in Van Buren town- 
ship and a third interest in her father's es- 
tate, which is large and valuable. In poli- 



tics Air. Teeple has always been an un- 
swerving Democrat. 

I hose who know Mr. Teeple best know 
him to be a man of good common sen>e. keen 
of judgment, spotless integrity, possessing 
strong attachments for friends and bearing 
the truest and deepest affection toward those 
who have claims upon his friendship. In 
all he has been a just man and his deeds 
are the best line by which to measure his 
life; in the end his works and wholesome 
influences will make his enduring monu- 
ment. 



MOSES F. LENTZ. 

Moses F. Lentz, whose life is given in 
the following sketch, and his partner. M. 
I". Wright, are the proprietors of the Mil- 
ford Planing Company. This business was 
established in 1899 with about ten thou- 
sand dollars invested. The plant is sup- 
plied with machinerv for making all kinds 
of building material and furnishings for 
offices, business houses and churches, includ- 
ing altars and seating for churches and pub- 
lic buildings. They also manufacture onion 
crates, this branch of the business alone 
requiring from eighty thousand to one hun- 
dred thousand feet of timber of each year. 
These bushel crates are used in handling 
and shipping the large onion crop grown in 
this section. From three to twelve men are 
employed in the plant and the value of the 
annual output amounts to about fifteen thou- 
sand dolars. The entire business is under 
the direct management of Mr. Lentz. who 
is 1 >ue 1 if the thi >n Highly reliable men of Mil- 
ford and who enjoys the confidence of his 
fellow citizens. 



584 



IPENDIUM OF BIOGRAI'llY. 



Mr. Lentz was born in Elkhart county, 
seven miles northeast of Milford, Novem- 
i8, i86o. His lather. Cyrus Lentz, was 
born in Montgomery county, Ohio, coming 
to Indiana at the age of eighteen, and was 
soon married to Mary Whitehead, of Elk- 
hart county. He became an extensive land 
owner, improving the farm where hi- son 
was born, and later owned other land and 
was living on his third farm, four and a 
half miles southeast of Milford at the time 
of his death. September -.7. 1900, being 
but sixty-six year- old. lie had lived in 
tint) twenty-five years and was 
well known over the north part of the coun- 
ty a- a business man. 

Moses remained with his parents until 
he was past twenty-'ine. At that a% 
married Mi-- Anna M. Ward and 
charge of the farm, his parent- moving t" 
Milford. Six years after their marriage his 
wife died and hi- parents returned t" the 
farm, remaining with him until hi- second 
marriage, to Mi-- Emma l>ul>l>-. daughter 
of John Dubbs of the vicinity. At the end 
n years on the farm he came to Mil- 
ford, where he worked with the butter and 
•npanv a- an expert butter maker, 
remaining with them until the factory 
lie and A. J. Young had taken a 
mortgage "ii the plant for a loan of money 
and when the company failed Mr. Lentz 
ic><>k the buildings to secure himself. With 
Mr. Young a- a partner, he continued to 
make butter for several year-, but not find- 
ing it particularly profitable they sold the 
machinery and replaced it with the planing- 
mill outfit. Mr. Young remained a partner 

for a year and wa- then succeeded by M. 
B [ones, who held his interest for three 
years and then -old to M. I'. Wright. Since 



that time Mr. Lent/: has been in personal 
Ije of the plant. The mill is doing an 
extensive business, due to the enterpris 
Mr. Lentz and his partner. 

In the fall of n>oo Mr. Lentz was elect- 
ed town-hip trustee on the Democratic 
ticket in a township with a close Democratic 
majority, hut hi- popularity carried him 
twenty votes ahead of the ticket. Heis act- 
ive in political affair-, take- a prominent 
part in conventions and i- a member of the 
party who may always he depended upon. 
lie has attended to the township's int< 
with commendable care: two-thirds of the 
roads are graveled and the township schools 
are in good condition. The town-hip pays 
\th of the school expenses at Milford, 
making its advantages free to :i ll the pupi's 
of the township. 

I '.'th Mr. and Mr-. Lent/ are members 
of the Progressive Brethren church, hi 

ne of the local trustees. They have 
three children. Mar) I'., aged -even. Paul- 
ine, aged three, and Llden J., the VOUI 

Mr. Lent/ is connected with Milford 
Camp No. 6373, Modern Woodmen of 
America, and with Tent No. 71. Knights 
of the Maccabees. At the death of hi- old 
partner. A. I. Young, who was also a mem- 
ber of the Maccabees, he wa- made admin- 
istrator of the e-tate. lie ha- been a man 
of many business care-, and ha- di-ch 
them all with faithfulness, establishing a 
firm reputation for integrity. 



• >RGE R. ' IGDEN. 

The "Purity" brand of flour i- one of 

ivorite products of northern Indiana 

and is maufactured b) R ' Igden at 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



585 



Milford, Kosciusko county, where its repu- 
tation has been steadily maintained for the 
past fourteen years as being one of the mi «1 
superior and uniform in quality of any flours 
placed on the markets of that section of the 
county, or perhaps of any other section. 

George R. Ogden was born in Otjsco, 
Ionia county, Michigan, October 18, 185S, 
and in 1859 was taken by his parents to 
Homer, Calhoun county, in the same state. 
George R. worked in the Homer Flouring 
Mills until nineteen years old and became a 
thorough miller. He then worked as a 
journeyman in Kalamazoo one year, and at 
Marshall. Michigan, eight years as head 
miller, and was then placed in charge of 
Ward & Smis' mills at Battle Creek, Mich- 
igan, for some time and then came to Mil- 
ford, in company with a Mr. Servoss, who 
died soon afterwards. 

In the fall of 1888 Mr. Ogden, in com- 
pany with James M. Secross, erected the 
present mill at a cost of fourteen thousand 
dollars. This is a seventy-five-barrel roller 
mill and is constructed on the Nordyke-Mar- 
men system. An elevator, constructed by 
William Faulkner, has been added and do- 
nated to the firm. In 1X90 James M. Se- 
cross retired from the firm and P. F. Miles 
assumed his interest in the firm, under the 
name of Odgen & Whetten Company, car- 
ried on the business for three years. Then 
\\. L. .Miles became a partner and the busi- 
ness was carried on three years longer, when 
Mr. Ogden became the sole operator, al- 
though Mr. Miles owns one-half interest in 
the real estate. Mr. Ogden employs three 
hands, the elevator has a capacity of eight 
thousand bushels, and eighty to one hundred 
thousand bushels are handled annually. The 
mill is a custom or local mill ami does an ex- 



change and feed-grinding business outside 
of the manufacture of its famous "Purity - ' 
flour. 

Mr. Ogden was reared a Republican, hut 
the tariff agitation of 1880 resulted in his 
casting his first presidential vote for General 
VVinfield Scott Plancock. the Democratic 
nominee for the chief magistracy of the 
United States, and he has since been loyal 
to this party. In 1890 he took an active part 
111 various committees, was later elected dele- 
gate to sundry conventions, and was finally 
elected chairman of the Democratic county 
central committee in 1900 and still fills that 
very onerous and exalted position. A radical 
change has taken place in Kosciusko county 
politics since 1890. Mr. Ogden was. nomi- 
nated, for instance, for county commissioner 
in 1894. hut the Republican majority was 
still too large; hut now. of the seventeen 
township trustees in the county, nine are 
Democrats, although the usual Republican 
majority throughout the county hail been 
about one thousand. 

Mr. Ogden was married August 31, 
1881, to Miss Nora R. Bennett, of Homer, 
Michigan, and a family of five children is 
the result, viz: Arba J.. George B., Bruce, 
Bertha L. and Russell, all of whom are at 
home with their parents, the eldest son being 
an assistant of his father in the mill. 

Fraternally Mr. Ogden is connected with 
the Masonic order, belonging to Lodge X". 
41S, in which he has filled all the chairs and 
represented it in the grand lodge, and to 
Chapter No. 160, < )rder of the Pastern Star. 
In the Independent Order of ()<\i\ Fellows 
he belongs to Lodge No. 478 at Milford, In- 
diana, in which also he has passed all the 
chairs and represented it in the grand lodge: 
to Encampment No. 242; Canton No. 4, at 



586 



COM PES IU CM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



Manhall, Michigan, and to Lodge No. 460, 
Rebekahs, at Milford. He is also a member 
of Lodge No. 451, I'.. P. 0. E, at Ligonier, 
and Tent No. 170, K. ( ). T. M., at Milford. 
Mrs. Ogden is a member of the Order of 
the Eastern Star, in which she is now hold- 
ing the office of worthy matron. 

Mr. ( Igden is regarded as one of the en- 
terprising citizens of Milford who has done 
much to advance the prosperity of the vil- 
lage and who has been active, ever since he 
settled here, in doing his part, financially 
and otherwise, toward bettering the condi- 
tion of public works and conveniences such 
as conduce to or are necessary for the com- 
fort and health of the community. He is 
recognized as a gentleman of strict integrity 
and business honor, and his social standing 
and that of his wife and family is with the 
best people of .Milford and the surrounding 
territi >n . 



WILLIAM C. DAVISSON. 

The gentleman whose name appears 
above is a retired farmer living in Milford, 
one of the worthy old citizens of Kosciusko 
county. The mantle of a well-spent life 
hangs comfortably about him and as the 
evening of his earthly pilgrimage is passing 
calmy away the hallowed recollections and 
tender memories of other days, when he was 
w< »nt to mingle in the busy affairs , ,f life and 

'lis part amid the ceaseless activities of 

nn ami business, come hack to him in 

his hours m|' quiet to cheer and make bright 

emainder of the pathway leading on- 
ward to the twilight and the journey's end. 
Mr. Davisson was horn in Preble county. 
Ohio, December i-\ [833, the sou of Ab- 
salom and Balinda v Adams) Davisson. the 



father a native of Virginia and the mother 
of New Jersey. The father and mother, 
with their respective parents were anions; the 
pioneers of Ohio and their marriage took 
place a number of years ago in Preble coun- 
ty. The mother died there in 1X4(1 and 
later Absalom Davisson chose for Ins com- 
panion Huldah Benson, whose people were 
also early settlers of the county of Preble. 
By occupation Mr. Davisson was a farmer 
and followed his chosen calling until his 
death, which occurred in the year [873. By 
his first wife lie was the father of chil- 
dren as follows: Josiah. John, William (.".. 
Eliza ].. George, Mary. Allen. Samuel. Levi 
and one that died in infancy, llis second 
marriage resulted in the birth of two chil- 
dren. Balinda and Johial. 

The childhood and youthful years of 
William C. Davisson were spent on the old 
homes'ead in Preble county and his early ed- 
ucational training was limited to a few 
months' attendance each winter upon the in- 
different subscription schools which were 
prevalent throughout the Buckeye state fifty 
and sixtv years ago. By far the greater part 
of his instruction was ,,f an intensely prac- 
tical nature, received from active contract 
with the rude implements of husbandry in 
general use when he was a lad. Later, by 
• iciating with his fellow men in various 
business transactions he laid by a store oi 
valuable knowledge which has enabled him 
to discharge successfully the duties ,,f a very 
active hfe. Mr. Davisson remained with his 
parents until attaining his majority and tl 
started into the world for himself as an agri- 
culturist a vocation which he carried on with 
enterprise and success until advancing years 
and sufficiency of worldly wealth rendered 
future active labor unnecessary. 





6tsin4-J^m 





f 6^l 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



587 



On the 22nd of March. 1857, Mr. Davis- 
son was united in marriage to Miss Sarah 
Wehrley, of Preble county, daughter of 
John J. and Margaret Wehrley. both parents 
natives of Virginia and among the pioneers 
of Ohio. They moved in 1865 to Koscius- 
ko county, Indiana, and here the rest of their 
lives were spent, both dying at ripe old ages. 
Their children's names were as follows : 
Sarah, Eli, Nelson. William Wesley and 
John, of whom the last named and William 
are deceased. 

In 1862 Mr. Davisson moved to Darke 
county, Ohio, where he purchased land and 
followed agriculture until 1865, at which 
time he sold his farm and, coming to Kos- 
ciusko county, Indiana, bought a place in 
the township of Van Buren, moving to the 
same in the spring of the following year. On 
this farm he lived and prospered until the 
spring of 1885. when he discontinued agri- 
culture temporarily and took up his resi- 
dence in Milford, which place he made his 
home about one year. Returning to the 
farm at the expiration of that time he re- 
sumed his chosen calling and continued the 
same with most encouraging results until 
1889, when, finding himself the possessor of 
a comfortable fortune, he wisely concluded 
to rent his land and spend the remainder of 
his days in honorable retirement. Mr. 
Davisson arranged his affairs satisfactorily 
and, moving to Milford, has since spent his 
time practically retired from active life, 
though still looking after his large agricult- 
ural and other interests and in many ways 
keeping in touch with the business world. 
He has been remarkably fortunate in a finan- 
cial sense and has long been counted one of 
the large land owners of his township, as 
well as one of the most successful agricultur- 

36 



ists of Kosciusko county. At the present 
time his real estate interests are represented 
by three hundred and twenty acres of fine 
farm lands, containing many valuable im- 
provements, also a beautiful home and num- 
ber of lots in Milford, all of which came 
with his possession as a result of his indus- 
trial and superior management. While act- 
ively prosecuting his agricultural interests 
there were few men the equal of Mr. Davis- 
son as a' farmer and none his superior. De- 
voting himself assiduously to his vocation, 
he rarely failed to reap abundant harvests,, 
while his various other business enterprises 
were uniformly successful. His sound judg- 
ment, wise forethought, quiet manner, and 
unexcitable temperament, w r hich left the 
mind unbiased and free to act, were largely 
the secret of his success and made him 
known and felt in the busy affairs of life. 
In ever\' relation with his fellow man he is 
a model of kindness and generosity. His 
home has always been open to his many 
friends and the stranger never failed to share 
his entertainment when such was requested. 
His name has been identified almost with- 
out exception with every undertaking cal- 
culated to foster the growth and develop the 
resources of his township and county and 
improve the condition of the citizens in pub- 
lic improvements of which all classes alike 
reap the benefit and in the promotion of in- 
dustries which furnish employment to many 
and thus stimulate the energies of the peo- 
ple. In his business matters he is sagaciou-. 
prompt, diligent and thorough and not a 
shadow of wrong or suspicion of evil has 
ever rested upon him. Socially he is a genial 
and intelligent companion, in his domestic 
relations a model husband and father, his 
home life affording rare pleasure to those 



58S 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



who have enjoyed its comfortable and cheer- 
ful atmosphere. Mr. Davisson has been a 
Republican since the organization of the 
party and believes its principles, although 
not entirely free from fault, to be on the 
whole better than those of any other polit- 
ical party in this i ir any i ither ci nmtry. Tak- 
ing an active interest in the party's success, 
he is by no means a politician, preferring 
the quiet life of private citizenship to the an- 
noyances and distraction which necessarily 
come to the professional partisan or office 
seeker. 

Mr. and .Mrs. Davisson have had five 
children born to them, viz: Anderson L., 
deceased; John F., a farmer of this count} : 
Margaret J., wife of Wesley Webster; Will- 
iam ().. also an agriculturist of Kosciusko 
county, and Charles M.. a resident of Mil- 
ford. 

In the foregoing lines have been brief!} 
-et forth the salient facts and some of the 
leading characteristics in the life of on< 
Kosciusko county's must enterprising and 
highly respected citizens. Commencing with 
a limited capital, but with an inborn deter- 
mination to succeed and paving the way to 
prosperity only with the solid rocks ol hon- 
est industry, true stability of character and 
correct conduct, he has achieved success in 
the face of every obstacle and won a name 
which when transmitted to posterity will 
ever shine with a radiance emanating from 
a life of honor and integrity. 



SYLVESTER HALL. 

In this sketch is given a brief synopsis 
of the life of one who holds precedence as 
one of the oldest living settlers of Koscius- 



ko county. So far as active and consecutive 
effort is concerned, he has been closely iden- 
tified with this part of the commonwealth 
since the early pioneer days, when were es- 
sayed the initial efforts looking to a reclam- 
on of the country from its sylvan wilds. 
His long resilience in the county and the 
conspicuous part he has taken in all work 
and important movements for the advance- 
ment of the general good and the develop- 
ment oi" the country's resources have gained 
him a personal acquaintanceship that makes 
his name a familiar one in every household 
in the community. His active conne 
with the history and growth of Kosciusko 
transcends the limits of sixty years and 
within this time he has been not only an eye 
witness of the many remarkable changes 
that have taken place, but an active partici- 
pant in the same, nobly bearing his part in 
winning for the county a proud position 
among the most enterprising and enlight- 
ened sections of the Hoosier state. 

Sylvester Hall is the son of Isaac and 
Prudence ( llui'i i Hall, the father a native 
of ( 'bio and the mother born in York state. 
These parents were married in Knox coun- 
ty, ( >hio, about the year 1833 moved to the 
count) of Seneca, where they resided till 
[837, in June 1 if \\ hich year they li taded their 
household effects and a few agricultural im- 
plements ''ii a wagon and started for north- 
ern Indiana, their objective point being Kos- 
ciusko county. After a trip of over a 
month's duration, attended with many diffi- 
culties and hardships, they finally reached 
their destination and located temporarily 
with a family by the name u\ Tusong, liv- 
ing about three miles south of Warsaw. 
For some weeks thereafter Isaac Hall trav- 
eled over the county quite extensively in 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



589 



search of a favorable location, and rinding 
the land in Jefferson township coming near- 
est his ideal concluded to purchase a farm 
there and make that section his home. In 
due time he invested in a tract of one hun- 
dred and sixty acres and as soon as he could 
conveniently do so moved his family to the 
same and at once began improving the land, 
in which he was assisted by his older sons. 
He cleared and developed a good farm and 
lived upon the same a number of years, later 
purchasing a place in the township of Van 
Buren to which he changed his residence. 
Here, a'bout [864, the wife died and a few- 
years later Air. Hall chose for a companion 
a Mrs. Baker, of Milford, moving sometime 
thereafter to Marshall county where he 
spent the remainder of his life, dying there 
in the year 1869. 

Isaac Hall was the father of the follow- 
ing children : John, deceased; Sylvester, 
whose name introduces this review ; Lor- 
enzo; Charles M., deceased; Richard H., a 
soldier in the war of the Rebellion, killed at 
the battle of Chickamauga; Sarah, deceased; 
George, deceased ; Eliza, deceased ; Eliza- 
beth, widow of the late Cyrus Fuller; Isaac 
B. and Isaac H, the last two dead, and one 
that died in infancy. 

Sylvester Hall was born October 2, 
1825, in Knox county, Ohio, and accom- 
panied his parents to Indiana when twelve 
years of age. From that time until reach- 
ing the years of manhood he bore his part in 
clearing and fitting the farm for cultivation 
and early learned by practical experience the 
true meaning of honest toil. Reared amid 
the stirring scenes of the pioneer period, he 
had little time for acquiring an education, 
his training in that direction being confined 
to a couple of months attendance of winter 



seasons upon such inferior subscription 
schools as the country at that time afforded. 
He remained with his father until twenty 
years of age and then took up carpentery, in 
which he soon acquired great proficiency 
and for a period of sixteen years thereafter 
worked at the trade in various parts of the 
country, husbanding his earnings with the 
most scrupulous care, with the object in 
view of ultimately purchasing a farm and 
engaging in agricultural pursuits. 

In 1858 Mr. Hall bought one hundred 
and sixty acres of woodland in section 9, 
Jefferson township, but did not immediately 
move to the same, continuing at his trade 
until about the year 1862 when he began his 
first efforts towards making a home. At 
that time his place was thickly covered with 
tall forests and dense undergrowth and the 
outlook was anything but encouraging. 
Strong arms, backed by a strong and deter- 
mined will, in due season overcame the diffi- 
culty and within a few years Mr. Hall found 
himself the possessor of a good farm, which, 
gradually increasing in value, with the en- 
largement of its tillable acreage, in time be- 
came one of the best and most desirable 
places in the township of Jefferson. To his 
original purchase he afterwards added forty 
acres adjoining and at the present time the 
two hundred acres in one body is one of the 
best cultivated and most highly improved 
places of the same area in the count}'. 

Mr. Hall has been twice married, the 
first time, April 1, 1847, to ^ iss Mariah 
Swihart, who was born in Ohio about the 
year 1823. She came to Kosciusko county 
with her mother and grandmother in 1836, 
her father basing died in Ohio some years 
prior to that time. Mrs. Hall bore her hus- 
band five children and departed this life in 



590 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



the year 1855. The name- of the children 
are as follows: Milton, deceased, Simon, 
Sarah. Emrneline, deceased, and Isaac. On 
the 2nd day of February, 1857. Mr. Hall 
married his present companion, Harriet 
Landis, a union blessed with the birth of six 
children: Elizabeth, Lucy, Emanuel, Rich- 
ard. Caroline and Lorenzo, all living at this 
time. 

As a farmer Mr. Hall early took high 
rank and sustained the reputation of an en- 
terprising and successful man until advanc- 
ing age admonished him to retire from act- 
ive labor. From the time when he knew full 
well what it was to have a home far removed 
from other settlers, in the midst of a dense 
forest, through which wolves prowled and 
deer roamed, to the date of his retirement. 
his life was characterized by industry ami 
consecutive toil, and his energies, directed 
and controlled by correct judgment, grad- 
ually materialized into the comfortable for- 
tune which he today enjoys, lie continued 
actively engaged in the management of his 
agricultural and other business interests un- 
til 1895, when, finding himself in possession 
of more than a sufficiency of this world's 
goods to render the remainder of his life 
free from care or anxiety, he rented his 
place and since then has been enjoying the 
restful quiet which only such as he know 
fully how to appreciate, lie now has 
beautiful and comfortable home situated on 
two acres of ground in the village of Mil- 
ford, where, surrounded by all that is cal- 
culated to make existence agreeable and 
happy, he is passing the evening of life ,u 
peace with the world and his Maker, receiv- 
ing dav by day the congratulations and well 
wishes of his many friends, all of whom de- 
sire that he may he Spared many years to 



bless the world with his presence. In such 
lives a- that of Mr. Hall there are no start- 
ling incidents nor any eccentricities of char- 
acter. In a quiet manner he has pursued the 
even tenor of his way. content to cultivate 
his acres and reap therefrom golden rewards 
for labors bestowed, taking little part in the 
active, bustling affairs of the busy world. 
Recognizing the fact that every citizen is 
under certain obligations tip society and the 
state, he has kept in touch with public affairs 
to the extent of exercising the elective fran- 
chise and using his influence to promote ail 
movements and enterprises having for their 
end the advancement of the community 
along social and moral lines. He is a man 
who strongly attracts the best elements in 
the community and when he makes friends 
they are for a life time. Mr. Hall is a zeal- 
ous Christian and. with his good wife, be- 
longs to the German Baptist church. His 
long and useful life has been fruitful in g< k id 
works and his name will long be remem- 
bered as one of Kosciusko's most exemplary 
characters and popular citizens. 



CURTIS C. FARBER. 

By reason of the official position which 
he has held for a number of years, as well 
as on account of an unblemished record as 
.me of the brave boy- in blue who responded 
to their country's call in the dark and 
troublesome days of the Rebellion, the sub- 
ject of this -ketch has become well known. 
\- an official he has earned more than a 
local reputation, and as a soldier, who be- 
came the target for the missiles of treason 
on many bloody battle fields, his career was 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



59i 



such as to place his name high on the roster 
of the country's gallant and patriotic de- 
fenders of the national Union. 

The Farbers were among the early set- 
tlers of Ohio, from which state came many 
of Indiana's most enterprising and substan- 
tial pioneers and citizens. Lewis Farber, 
father of Curtis C, came with his parents 
to Jay county, Indiana, when twelve years 
old and was reared to maturity on a farm. 
He was the first mail carrier from the vil- 
lage of College Corners, Jay county, where 
his father was postmaster, and shortly after 
his marriage, which was solemnized with 
Miss Martha Clark, he entered the ministry 
of the United Brethren church, to which 
holy calling the residue of his life was de- 
voted. Lewis and Martha Farber were the 
parents of twelve children, Mary A., Benja- 
min, Margaret, Curtis C, William, Caro- 
line, Nancy, Ellen, David, Augustus, Mark- 
wood and George W. 

Curtis C. Farber was born in Jay coun- 
ty, Indiana, September 18, 1846, and spent 
!iis childhood and youth at the various places 
where his father was stationed while an 
itinerant preacher. The common schools 
afforded him the means of a fair English 
education and his early life was spent pretty 
much like that of the majority of village and 
country lads, alternating between labor and 
attendance at school. He remained with his 
parents until about seventeen years old, 
meanwhile looking after their interests and 
contributing with the older brother and sis- 
ters to the maintenance of the family. At 
the breaking out of the great Civil war, 
when a wave of patriotic enthusiasm spread 
throughout the Xorth. calling upon the 
brave and sturdy yeomanry to maintain un- 
sullied the national honor, young Farber be- 



came imbued with the prevailing spirit and 
as soon as old enough tendered his services 
and, if need be, his life to the end that the 
L-nion might not be disrupted. It was while 
his father was stationed at Dunkirk, Ohio, 
that he entered the army, enlisting Septem- 
ber 8. 1863. in Company A, Twelfth Ohio 
Cavalry, for three years' service or during 
the war; he lacked ten days of his seven- 
teenth year when his name was enrolled as 
a volunteer. His command was first as- 
signed to duty in Virginia and the first en- 
gagement of any importance in which he 
participated was at what was known as the 
Salt Works in that state. Subsequently he 
took part in a number of battles, minor en- 
gagements and skirmishes, among which 
were Wvtheville and Orb Oaks, Virginia, 
Mt. Sterling, Kentucky, and Salsbury, North 
Carolina, the last-named place being where 
the Twelfth Cavalry was detached for the 
purpose of assisting in the pursuit and cap- 
ture of the president of the Southern Con- 
federacy, Jefferson Davis. Mr. Farber was 
within less than a half mile of Davis when 
the latter was captured and, with others of 
his command, assisted in guarding the noted 
prisoner and accompanied him until he was 
placed in the care of another escort. Mr. 
Farber saw a great deal of active service 
and shared with his comrades the excitement 
and dangers of war in many thrilling situa- 
tions. He participated in a number of gal- 
lant charges, during which the air around 
him resounded with the awful shrieks of 
bursting shells, mingled with the weird hum 
of the deadly musket and rifle balls, when 
it seemed impossible for any one to emerge 
alive from the terrible ordeal of death. 
Twice he had two horses shot from under 
him. and throughout his entire career as a 



592 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



soldier his conduct was all that a brave 
man's culd he. At the close of the war he 
was mustered out of the service at Nashville, 
Tennessee, his discharge bearing the date of 
November 14. 1865. By reason of duty 
faith fully done and broken health, superin- 
duced h\- exposure and hardships while in 
the service, he is now the recipient of a 
monthly pension of sixteen dollars, a sum 
far too small in view of the vicissitudes he 
endured while giving the best years of his 
life that the government should remain as 
the fathers founded it. 

While in the army Mr. Farber's father 
was transferred to a church in Jay county, 
Indiana, and thither the subject proceeded 
immediately after his discharge. For some 
months after his return he worked as a farm 
hand for his uncle, Curtis Clark, and later 
engaged in the insurance business in Port- 
land. Jay county's seat of justice. He re- 
mained at that place for a period of fourteen 
years, seven of which were spent with Gen. 
J. I'. C. Shanks, one of Indiana's leading 
military men and noted jurists and for some 
years a representative in the United States 
congress. He did a thriving business in 
different lines of insurance and continued to 
remain in Jay county until 1 S« ; 1 . at which 
lime he became a citizen of Kosciusko. 

Shortly after coming to this countv Mr. 
Farber was appointed justice of the peace 
to fill out an unexpired term, and at the 
next election was chosen to the office by the 
vote of the people of Plain township. He 
has served continuously to the present time 
and as a justice has become widely and 
favorably known, many important case- hav- 
ing been tried in his court and much busi- 
ness brought to him from various parts of 
the country. He possesses a judicial mind. 



his decisions have invariably been character- 
ized by fairness, and but little dissatisfaction 
has ever resulted from his manner of ad- 
judicating cases involving complex technical 
pi iint> and a sound knowledge of the law. 

Mr. Farber was married March _>^. 
189 1 , to Mrs. Laura Mahoney, widow of 
William Mahoney and daughter of Robert 
and Lavina (Saxon) Michaels. Immedi- 
ately thereafter he purchased property in the 
village of Oswego. Plain township, where 
he has since lived. He has a pleasant home 
and is comfortably situated, his place being 
neat and attractive in ap|)earance, bespeak- 
ing the presence of people of cultivation and 

I taste. Mr. Farber is an enthusiastic worker 
in the Grand Army of the Republic, being a 

1 charter member of Sylvester J. Bailey Post. 
Xo. 154. at Portland. He served as officer 
of the day four and a half years, two years 
as adjutant, and was also commander for a 

: considerable length of time. For four years 
he was second lieutenant in Company A of 
the state militia and it is conceded by those 
capable of judging that he is one of the 
best posted men in military affairs, as well 
as one of the most thorough drill masters, 
in this part of the state of Indiana. At the 
present time he is commander of William 
McLaughlin Post at Milford and his serv- 
ices as such have been eminently satisfactory 
and greatly appreciated by every member of 
the organization. By reason of his affilia- 
tion with the Grand Army of the Republic 
Mr. Farber has become widely known 
throughout the state and he enjoys the high 
esteem ami warm personal friendship of 
many of the leading members of the order 
in Indiana and elsewhere. To meet with his 
old comrades and recount the thrilling 
scenes of vote, when the country was in the 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



593 



throes of rebellion, he deems among his 
most pleasant and agreeable experiences and 
wherever he sees a worthy soldier he greets 
him as a brother, bound by no ordinary ties. 
Mr. Farher is a man of wide and varied in- 
telligence, a great reader, especially of his- 
toric and political subjects, upon all of which 
he has deep and sound convictions. He is 
a stanch supporter of the Republican party, 
the principles of which he believes to be for 
the best interests of the country ; consequent- 
ly he is ever ready to put forth his best ef- 
forts in behalf of the ticket and deems no 
activity too great if thereby its success may 
be promoted. 

Since his twenty-first year Mr. Farber 
has been in office almost continuously and 
that he has been so long thus honored is 
proof that his duties have been discharged in 
a manner highly creditable to himself and 
satisfactory to the public. Although not a 
member of any religious organization, lie is 
a liberal contributor to the Methodist Epis- 
copal church, of which his wife is an active 
member, and to all matters of charity and 
benevolence he gives with a free and open 
hand. As a man he is a creditable repre- 
sentative of the highest order of American 
citizenship and in every relation of life his 
conduct has been that of a liberal minded, 
intelligent and courteous gentleman. In 
brief, he is a type of the strong and virile 
class through whose efforts the great com- 
monwealth of Indiana is indebted for its 
splendid achievements of the past and for 
the large measure of success and prosperity 
which it enjoys at the present time. 

Mr. and Mrs. Farber have two daugh- 
ters. Ethel, born August 3, 1895, and Su- 
sanna P., whose birth took place March 30, 
1899. By her previous marriage Mrs. Far- 



ber is the mother of a son, Luther Mahoney, 
who was born on the 14th day of Septem- 
ber, 1884. 



JOSEPH S. ARMEY. 

The well-known subject of this review 
is one of Jefferson township's highly es- 
teemed citizens and as a farmer occupies a 
place in the front rank of Kosciusko coun- 
ty's successful agriculturists. In his veins 
flows the blood of a long line of German, 
Scotch and Irish ancestors and it can be 
truthfully said that he combines in his men- 
tal and physical make-up many of the char- 
acteristics for which those sturdy peoples 
have long been noted. Family history re- 
veals the fact that the Armeys were among 
the early settlers of Virginia, in which state 
the subject's grandfather, Abraham Armey, 
was born, reared and married. He served 
in the war of 181 2 as private in a Virginia 
regiment and after the cessation of hostil- 
ities engaged in farming, which vocation 
he carried on all his life. The maiden name 
of his wife was Anna France; she was also 
a native of the Old Dominion. About the 
year 1825 he left his Virginia home and mi- 
grated to Montgomery county, Ohio, where 
he spent the remainder of his days, dying 
there at a good old age. The seven chil- 
dren born to Abraham and Anna Armey 
were as follows: Jacob. John, Henry, 
Susan, Magdalena, Elizabeth and one that 
died before receiving a name. 

The oldest of the children, Jacob Armey, 
was born in Virginia and accompanied his 
parents to Ohio when fourteen years of age. 
He was reared' a farmer and. with the ex- 
ception of a limited period spent in the tan- 



594 



COMI'EXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



ning business when a young man. made the 
pursuit of agriculture his life work. In an 
earlv day he went to Union county, Indi- 
ana, where lie met and married Mi>-. Amy 
Stevenson, who was born in Warren county, 
Ohio. June jo. 1813. She was the daughter 
of John Stevenson, who moved from eastern 
Ohio to Indiana in pioneer times and l>e- 
came a well-known citizen and successful 
farmer of Union county. Jacob Armey con- 
tinued to reside in Union county until about 
the year 1838, when he went hack to his old 
Ohio home, where he remained till 1851. at 
which time he returned to Indiana and lo- 
cated in the county of Kosciusko. He set- 
tled temporarily in Clay township, where 
he rented land, and also cultivated a farm 
in Wabash county, living on leased land un- 
til 1863. when he moved to Scott township 
and took possession of a farm which he had 
purchased the previous year. Subsequently 
he bought other real estate in section 1 of 
the same township, to which he removed 
and on which his death took place in Au- 
gust, 1874; Mrs. Armey survived her hus- 
band till [898, at which time she was called 
to the other life. Eight children were horn 
to this worthy couple, namely: Joseph S., 
Margaret A.. William S., I.ydia. Hannah 
J.. Susannah. Martha and Abraham. 

Joseph S. Armey, the first horn of the 
family, is a native of Union county, Indi- 
ana, and dates his birth from the 17th day 
of February, 1830. He attended the schools 
in the neighborhood of the home farm when 
a hoy. and spent the first fifteen years of his 
life in the county of Montgomery. Ohio, 
meanwhile assisting his father with the farm 
work, not a little of which fell to him by 
reason of his being the oldest son. He ac- 
companied the family to Kosciusko county 



in 1851 and. with the exception of a few 
years, has made this part of the state his 
home to the present day. the exception re- 
ferred to being the time he lived in the coun- 
ty "f Wabash, which covered a period of 
nearly ten years. 

Mr. Armey remained with his parents 
until of a legal age. but it was not until 
[860 that he bought land of his own. which 
he began to improve in 1863. His first pur- 
chase consisted of eighty acres in section 6, 
Jefferson township, to which he afterwards 
made an addition of four and a half acres 
adjoining, the two tracts combined forming 
the nucleus of his present estate of four hun- 
dred aero. From his boyhood Mr. Armey 
was trained to habits of industry and he 
found his early lessons of great practical 
value when he began the work of clearing 
his land and fitting it for cultivation. He 
erected comfortable buildings on his place, 
gradually extended the area of tillable land 
until he found himself in the possession of 
a beautiful farm, which for general agri- 
cultural purposes is not excelled by any like 
number of acres in the township in which 
it is situated. 

Vs a farmer and business man Mr. 
Armey has always been regarded as a rep- 
resentative citizen of his township and coun- 
ty, lie i^ a careful manager and a good 
financier, and his judgment is seldom wrong 
nil matters coming within his sphere as an 
agriculturist and stock raiser. His life has 
been characterized by consecutive toil and 
well-directed effort and the success which 
has crowned his labors mark him as a man 
of sound judgment, keen discernment and 
prudent forethought. He is methodical in 
his work, prompt in meeting all obligations. 
not given to speculation of any kind, hut 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



595 



satisfied with the gradual but sure gains 
which result from legitimate labor. Per- 
sonally he has many friends in his township 
ami the high esteem in which he is held 
proves him to be the possessor of those cor- 
rect moral principles which make men 
worthy of public as well as private con- 
fidence. 

Mr. Armey has been twice married, the 
first time in May, 1870, to Miss Thursey 
E. Snyder, who bore him the following chil- 
dren : William W., deceased; Amy C, de- 
ceased ; Jacob F. Lewis, deceased ; Adam and 
Aaron, twins, the former dead; Eva, de- 
ceased; Emma J., Joseph M. and Noah E. 
The second marriage was solemnized March 
5. 1S97, with Mrs. Sallie M. French, widow 
of the late Carnelius French, a union with- 
out issue. 

+-+-+ 

CHARLES T. DYE. 

For many years the well-known subject 
of this sketch has been engaged in agricult- 
ural pursuits in Kosciusko county and is 
well entitled to representation with the en- 
terprising and progressive men of the town- 
ship of which he is an honored citizen. He 
comes from good old Revolutionary stock, 
his great-grandfather having been a hero of 
the colonial struggle for independence, and 
later his father fought for three years in 
the army which crushed forever the armed 
hosts of treason in one of the greatest wars 
known to history. 

Marshall A. Dye, the subject's father, 
was born in 1821. In an early day he en- 
tered land in Kosciusko county through an 
uncle and came to his possession in Tippe- 
canoe township in the year 1859. He re- 



sided on his original purchase until 1892, at 
which time he took up his abode in the town- 
ship of Plain, where he now lives. As al- 
ready stated, he was a veteran of the late 
Civil war, serving three years as private in 
Company G, Second Indiana Cavalry\ and 
earning the reputation of a brave defender 
of the old flag. He is the father of four 
children, Alexander, Charles T., Edgar and 
William, all deceased but the subject of this 
review. Alexander was a soldier in the war 
of the Rebellion and died while in the 
service. 

Charles T. Dye is a native of. Miami 
county, Ohio, and dates his birth from the 
27th day of January, 185 1. He was reared 
to agricultural pursuits, secured a good ed- 
ucation in the common schools and remained 
with his parents until twenty-one years of 
age. He assisted his father on the farm and 
on attaining his majority decided to follow 
tilling the soil for a life work, a resolution 
which he has since carried out with satis- 
factory financial results. 

In the year 1872 Mr. Dye and Miss Evi- 
line Robinson, daughter of an early settler 
of Tippecanoe township, were united in the 
holy bonds of wedlock, a union resulting in 
the birth of three children, Charles M., 
Thomas W. and John W. The first two are 
married, Charles M. living in North Web- 
ster and Thomas in the village of Oswego. 
The mother of these children died Novem- 
ber 8. 1885. and in February of the year 
following Mr. Dye was united in marriage 
to Irene F. Bartholomew, daughter of Levi 
Bartholomew, one of the early settlers of 
Kosciusko county. Five children have been 
born to Mr. Dye's second marriage, name- 
ly: Rosella M., Clarence A., Levi L., Alta 
and Le Roy. 



596 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



Mr. Dye made his home in Tippecanoe 
township for a number of years and met 
with encouraging success as a farmer and 
stuck raiser. In 1886 he purchased his pres- 
ent farm of one hundred and forty-seven 
acres, partly in Tippecanoe, Plain and Van 
Buren townships. Industrious, frugal and 
energetic, he lias prosecuted his labors in 
such a manner as to win an enviable repu- 
tation as an enterprising agriculturist and 
earns for himself a comfortable competency, 
being- now in independent circumstances. 
He believes in the dignity of the farmer's 
vocation, keeps abreast the times in all that 
pertains to agricultural science and man- 
ages his place in Mich a way as to insure the 
largest possible returns in exchange for the 
time and labor expended upon the soil. His 
place bears every evidence of thrift and 
good taste, the buildings and fences being 
in first-class condition, while the appearance 
of the well-cultivated fields testify to the 
care and labor devoted to them. 

As a neighbor and citizen the county 
has no better or more worthy men than 
Charles T. Dye. Honest and upright in all 
of his dealings, courteous in his relations 
with his fellow men and of unsullied char- 
acter, he has borne well his part in life and 
his influence in the community has always 
been potent for good. He is a reader and 
observer, familiar with current events, and 
has well grounded opinions relative to every 
great public or political question now be- 
fore the American people. A stanch ad 
herent 'if the Republican party and taking 
an active interest in its behalf, he is by no 
mean- narrow or prejudiced in his views, 
no,- ha- he ever been a partisan in the sense 
of seeking office at the hands of hi- fellow 
citizens. At the present time he is a mem- 



ber of the township advisory hoard and as 
such has rendered efficient service, his judg- 
ment being sound and his opinions having 
much weight with his associates. 

Mr. Dye is identified with the Pythian 
fraternity, holding membership with the 
lodge at Leesburg. He and wife move in 
the best social circles of the community and 
are among the most intelligent and popular 
people of their neighborhood. Personally 
Mr. Dye is of pleasing address, easily ap- 
proachable and he numbers his friends by 
the score wlierever he is known. All enter- 
prises and movements for the public good 
find in him a zealous friend and liberal 
patron. 



JOHN C. BEAGLE. 

The history of the loyal sons and repre- 
sentative citizens of Kosciusko county would 
not l)e complete should the name that heads 
this review be omitted. When the tierce fire 
of rebellion was raging throughout the 
Southland, threatening to destroy the L'nion, 
he responded with patriotic fervor to the call 

for volunteers and in some of the hi best 

battles for which that great war was noted 
proved bis loyalty to the government he 
loved so well. During a useful life in the 
region where he lives he has labored dili- 
gently to promote the interests of the people, 
working earnestly and with little regard for 
his personal advancement or ease. He has 
been devoted to the public welfare and in all 
of his relations his highest ambition has been 
to benefit the community and advance its 
standard of citizenship. 

The birth of John Beagle occurred in 
Kosciusko county. Indiana, April 7. 1840. 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



597 



He is the son of Calvin and Isabella 
(Walker) Beagle, the former a native of 
New York and the latter descended from 
an old Scotch family that settled many years 
ago in that state. Stephen Beagle, the sub- 
ject's grandfather, a New Yorker, was a 
cooper by trade. He married, near the 
place of his nativity, Elizabeth Dobin, and in 
June, 1836, sold his farm and migrated to 
[Michigan, where he entered and improved 
one hundred and sixty acres of land. He 
made good improvements, became a success- 
ful tiller of the soil and spent the remainder 
of his life on the land which he bought 
from the government, dying there a num- 
ber of years ago. His first wife died in New 
York and later he again married, the latter 
companion departing this life in Michigan. 
Stephen Beagle was the father of fourteen 
children, whose names are as follows : Amos, 
Leonard, Almon, Phcebe, Calvin, Sarah. 
Emily. Clarissa, Eliza, Nancy, Abigail, 
Anna, John and Luther. 

Calvin, the fifth son and father of the 
subject of this sketch, was born October 21, 
181 1, in New York, and inherited to a 
marked degree many of the sturdy charac- 
teristics of the Irish and Welsh nationalities, 
from which his parents were descended. 
On the 27th day of November, 1837, he was 
united in marriage to Isabella Walker and 
immediately thereafter arranged his affairs 
so as to move west, where land could be 
cheaply procured. Kosciusko county was 
in its infancy when Mr. Beagle cast his lot 
with its fortunes, as a resident of what is 
now the township of Washington. His ar- 
rival here dates from 1838, in which year 
he entered one hundred and twenty acres of 
land, erected a small log cabin, sixteen by 
eighteen feet in size, and began life as a 



pioneer. He was one of the first permanent 
settlers of the above township and did much 
to promote its material development. After 
living on his original purchase about eleven 
years he exchanged it for a farm of one hun- 
dred and twenty-nine acres in Plain town- 
ship, to which he removed on the 7th day of 
April. 1849. He made the latter place his 
home until July, 1900, at which time he 
moved to Oswego, where he now resides. 

Calvin and Isabella Beagle enjoyed a 
long and happy married life, the union be- 
ing severed by the death of the latter after 
the two had traveled life's journey hand in 
hand for the almost unprecedented period 
of sixty-three years. They were the oldest 
couple in Plain township, if not in the coun- 
ty, and their long residence made them fa- 
miliarly known throughout a large area of 
country. Subsequently Mr. Beagle married 
a second wife, with whom he is still living. 
He has reached the remarkable age of ninety 
years, and, like an oak in a field, has seen 
his companions and friends of other years 
about him fall one by one until he alone is 
left to weave the thread of personal incident 
with the woof oi Kosciusko county's pio- 
neer history. His life has been closely con- 
nected with this part of the state and, as in- 
dicated above, few men have been as active 
as he in developing the country and induc- 
ing a good class of settlers to make it their 
home. He has been a good man, prominent 
in charitable and religious work, and since 
his twenty-ninth year an active and consist- 
ent member of the church. By his first wife 
Calvin Beagle is the father of four children, 
Perry. John C, Luther and Evaline, all liv- 
ing except the last named. 

John C. Beagle was reared in Kosciusko 
countv, and remembers well when the conn- 



59 8 



COMPEXDICM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



try was new and comparatively undeveloped. 
No striking incident marked his life, which 
was spent in the woods and fields, alternat- 
ing with attendance at the public sell* 
lie received from his father an excellent 
training for the practical duties of life, while 
the sweet gentle influence of his mother had 
much to do in shaping his character and 
preparing him for those higher obligations 
which mark the relations of man with his 
fellow men. Mindful of what his parents 
had done for him during his childhood and 
youth, he remained with them until a man 
grown, assisting with the labors of the farm 
and. like a dutiful son. looking carefully 
after their interests. Shortly after attain- 
ing his majority he was united in the bonds 
of wedlock with Miss Phoebe Weber, who 
was born in Stark county. Ohio, and came 
with her parents to Kosciusko county when 
a miss of eleven years. 

John C. Beagle, although a young man 
and just married at the time the Rebellion 
broke out, was tired with patriotism and 
could not bear to see the slightest injury 
offered to his country. When the struggle 
burst forth in all of its fury, threatening to 
destroy the American Union, he tendered his 
services to the government by enlisting in 
Compan) II, One Hundred and Twenty- 
ninth Indiana Volunteer Infantry. Bidding 
his young bride an affectionate farewell, he 
joined his command at Michigan City and 
from there was hurried to Nashville, Ten- 
nessee, where, with various other regiments, 
the One Hundred and Twenty-ninth was 
sent to reinforce < ieneral Sherman at Resaca, 
Georgia. Mr. Beagle took part in the bloody 
campaign in the vicinity of that Confederate 
stronghold and participated in several of the 
most noted battles before his company had 



received any drill or military training what- 
ever, and for several weeks he was almost 
constantly under tire. After the fall of At- 
lanta his regiment was sent back to Nash- 

. . . 

ville. arriving m time to participate in the 

see. .ml battle there, where General Thomas 
gained such a signal and crushing victory 
over the Confederate forces under General 
Hood. Subsequently he met the enemy at 
Kinston, Goldsboro and Raleigh. North 
Carolina, and at the close of the war was 
mustered out of the service, his discharge 
bearing the date of September u. [865. 

Mr. Beagle was a brave soldier and a 
true patriot, his record in the field is with- 
out a blemish and the hardships endured 
and dangers braved proved his loyalty tp 
the nag for which he has a love amounting 
almost to reverence. He encountered the 
hosts of treason under many dangerous con- 
ditions, but was never known to falter in his 
duty and hesitated not to face the foe when 
■ to do so appeared to invite death in its most 
awful form. < )n leaving the army he re- 
turned to his home, where, as may be sup- 
posed, a most joyful welcome awaited him. 
During the seven years following the 
close of the war Mr. Beagle was engaged in 
agricultural pursuits, but at the end of that 
time he temporarily abandoned farming and 
opened a grocery store in the village oi 
North Webster. He sold goods at this 
place and Oswego two years and then dis- 
posed of his stock and again turned his at- 
tention to the tilling of the soil. From that 
time to the present he has cultivated his 
farm, which now consists of two hundred 
and nine acres, eighty of which were cleared 
ami developed by his own labor. He is 
classed with the progressive fanners of Plain 
township, as his residence, commodious barn 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



599 



and other improvements, together with the 
splendid condition of his fields, abundantly 
attest. 

Mr. and Mrs. Beagle are the parents of 
six children, namely: Mary I., wife of Al- 
fred Ervin, of Wayne township; William 
H., deceased ; Charley W. married Zetta Cox 
and lives in Montana ; Russel C. married 
Minnie Goshorn and lives in the village of 
Oswego ; Norman L. lives in Idaho, where 
he holds a lucrative position. Anna May, 
the youngest of the family, is a student in 
the schools of Oswego. Mr. Beagle is a 
well-informed man and takes a lively in- 
terest in all great public questions of the 
day. Politically he has always voted with 
the Democratic party in national and state 
affairs, but locally disregards party ties and 
casts his ballot independently. In religion 
he is a Baptist, to which denomination his 
wife also belongs. He joined the church in 
1869 and has been one of its most faithful 
and zealous members ever since, working 
diligently as a layman and in the capacity 
of 'deacon, proving a most capable and pop- 
ular official. He is especially interested in 
the Sunday school, which he considers the 
most important auxiliary of the church. For 
a period of twenty years he has served as 
superintendent and assistant superintendent, 
a fact which speaks well for his efficiency as 
a leader in that important branch of re- 
ligious endeavor. Fraternally he was for- 
merly a member of the Grand Army of the 
Republic, but of recent years, on account of 
the distance which he has to go to attend, 
lias not been a very active participant in the 
work of the post with which he was 
identified. 

Personally .Mr. Beagle is a gentleman of 
pleasing address and quiet appearance, frank 



and kindly in manner and popular with his 
friends and fellow citizens. He has led a 
singularly pure and clear life, never having 
been under the influence of any kind of in- 
toxicants, while tobacco in any form has al- 
ways been one of his especial aversions. 
Measured by the true standard of excellence, 
he is an honorable, upright, courteous Chris- 
tian gentleman, true to himself and to others, 
and his influence in the community has al- 
ways been potent for good. He gives close 
attention to his business affairs and has 
amassed a sufficiency of this world's goods 
to make the rest of his life comfortable and 
free from embarrassment. He is one of the 
valuable men of his neighborhood, possess- 
ing tact and discriminating judgment, and is 
always ready to advise others, many being 
eager to avail themselves of his wise sug- 
gestions in matters of business. His home 
is all that good taste and kindness can make 
it and his social and family relations are of 
the most pleasant and agreeable character. 



TOSEPH BLACK. 



For more than fifty years the honored 
old pioneer and substantial citizen whose 
name appears above has been a resident of 
Kosciusko county and a prominent factor 
in its material growth and agricultural de- 
velopment. Few have been here as long as 
he and none have been more active during 
the last half century in making Prairie 
township one of the most enterprising and 
progressive sections of northern Indiana. 
Originally the Blacks were natives of Vir- 
ginia, where the family was widely and fa- 
vorably known during the colonial period. 



6oo 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



In their veins flow the blood of the English 
and Irish nationalities, and the descendants 
tn the present day exhihit many of the ster- 
ling qualities of those two strong and virile 
peoples. Samuel Black, the subject's uncle, 
entered the American army at the breaking 
out of the Revolutionary war. and soon ruse 
to the rank of captain. He served with dis- 
tinction until independence was achieved, as 
did also his brother, John Black, who proved 
a brave and gallant soldier in many of the 
most noted battles of that historic struggle. 
Another brother. James 1 '.lack, was horn on 
the ancestral estate in Virginia and when a 
young man went to (./lark count}, Ohio, at 
that time on the verge of western civiliza- 
tion, and entered a tract of government land 
as early as the year 1811. He married in 
his native state .a young lady by the name of 
Catherine Black and was an active partici- 
pant in the pioneer period of (lark county. 
He cleared a good farm, became one of the 
leading agriculturists of the community in 
which he settled and for many years en- 
joyed the reputation of an enterprising and 
honorable citizen. James and Catherine 
Black lived useful lives and died on the 
place in Clark county. Ohio, where they 
originally located. They reared a family of 
ten children, namely : Mary. Matthew, 
Susan J.. Catherine, Dorcas. Joseph (the 
subject of this review ), Samuel 11.. James. 
Julia A. and John A., the majority of whom 
have long since gone to the other world. 

Joseph I '.lack, of this sketch, was horn in 
Clark county. Ohio, December 21, [823. 
1 lis childhood and youthful years were spent 
on the home farm and in the subscription 
schools he received such educational train- 
ing as the teachers of those days were ca- 
pable of imparting. When old enough to 



begin life for himself he chose the ancient 
and honorable calling of agriculture and a 
little later operated a saw and grist-mill in 
connection with his labirs on his father's 
farm. This was perhaps the first mill erect- 
ed in Clark county and for a number of years 
was highly prized by the people of a large 
area of country, being the only place where 
they could obtain their supply of lumber and 
Hour. 

( in obtaining his majority young Black 
concluded to make a tour of observation 
through the states of Indiana. Illinois and 
Wisconsin, with the object in view of pur- 
chasing land, provided he could find a suit- 
able location; accordingly in 1845 he started 
on horseback to what was then considered 
the far west. He traveled through northern 
Indiana, making his way to Kosciusko coun- 
ty via Huntington, and. being much pleased 
with the advantages the former presented as 
an agricultural region, concluded to secure 
land there, provided he found no more fa- 
vorable location further westward. He pro- 
ceeded on his trip to the then young and 
growing town of Chicago, thence as far 
northwest as Madison. Wisconsin, and be- 
fore his return rode over a considerable por- 
tion of Iowa, at that time a wild, unbroken 
prairie with settlements few and far be- 
tween. Being more than ever pleased with 
the fertile soil of Kosciusko county and its 
favorable outlook as a rich agricultural 
region and ultimately the center of a great 
population, he purchased, in the fall of 1S40. 
one hundred and eighty-two acres of his 
present farm in the township of Prairie. 
Xo sooner had Mr. Black obtained posses- 
sion of his land than he began preparations 
to improve it. In company with a comrade. 
one Alexander Wallace, he erected a small 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



60 1 



cabin and during the three years following 
the two lived together, each working on his 
respective place, doing their own housework 
and obtaining as much pleasure as possible 
from their isolated and lonely situation. At 
the end of three years Mr. Black returned 
to Clark county, Ohio, where, on the 20th 
day of December, 1849, he was united in 
marriage fo Miss Susan Richeson, daughter 
of George and Prudence (Prillman) Riche- 
son, whose parents were natives of Virginia 
and of Irish-English extraction. Mrs. 
Black's parents were early settlers of Ohio, 
though natives of Virginia. George Riche- 
son was not only a brave and hardy pioneer, 
but also a gallant soldier in the war of 18 12, 
in which he was an officer of high rank. 
In the spring of 1850 Mr. Black and 
wife loaded their household effects and a few 
agricultural implements on a wagon and 
started for their new home in Kosciusko 
county, reaching their destination on the 
25th day of April. They moved into the 
little house that Mr. Black had formerly oc- 
cupied while "baching" and occupied it for 
a period of ten years, at the end of which 
time the present dwelling was erected. As 
already stated, his original purchase con- 
sisted of one hundred and eighty-two acres, 
which, with what movable property he had 
at the time of his marriage, represented a 
capital of about one thousand dollars. With 
this modest beginning and a future bright 
with promise, he set to work to clear his 
land and if possible increase his possessions 
and improve his worldly condition. That 
he has succeeded in this laudable purpose is 
attested by the fact of his having purchased 
adjoining land from time to time until he 
became one of the leading farmers of Prairie 
township, also one of its largest owners of 



real estate. At the present time Mr. Black 
is the possessor of land t«i the amount of 
four hundred and eighty acres, all valuable, 
and his wealth is estimated at over thirty 
thousand dollars. Every dollar in his pos- 
session has been earned by legitimate and 
honorable means and no individual in the 
county of Kosciusko is more entitled to the 
term "'self-made man" than he. Originally 
his land was densely covered with fine tim- 
ber, from the sale of which in a later day 
he realized a large sum of money. He also 
appreciated the value of good live stock as 
a source of income and early stocked his 
place with tine breeds of cattle, horses and 
hogs, which', in addition to general farming, 
have been the means of building up the large 
fortune which he today enjoys. 

Mr. Black and family experienced all the 
vicissitudes of hardships and sufferings 
which characterized the pioneer period of 
Kosciusko county; but. unlike many others, 
he refused to become discouraged and return 
to the more comfortable home which he left 
behind. For several years after coming to 
the new country the family suffered much 
from the diseases then prevalent, notably 
the ague in its most aggravated form; not 
infrequently the father, mother and children 
were down at the same time, with no one 
to alleviate their sufferings or minister to 
their necessities. As the population in- 
creased and the country was denuded of the 
forests and the swamps drained, the 
"shakes" gradually disappeared, but many 
years passed before the family were exempt 
, from the regular attacks of malaria. 

Mr. Black worked hard and honorably 
earned the reputation he today enjoys as 
one of the leading farmers and prominent 
citizens of Prairie township. It is needless 



602 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



to say that he is held in highest esteem in 
the community, for he lias thrown the force 
of his individuality and his sterling integ- 
rity into making the country what it is and 
his efforts have not failed of appreciation 
on the part of the local public. His name 
will ever he inseparably linked with that of 
Prairie township, whose interests could 
ha\e mi more zealous and indefatigable pro- 
moter. He and wife are among the oldest, 
best-known and highly respected people of 
the community where they live and their in- 
fluence has ever been exerted to the end that 
the world might he made better by their 
presence. 

In politics Mr. Black exercises his fran- 
chise in support of the Democratic party. 
He cast his lirst presidential ballot for James 
1\. 1'nlk and from that time to the present 
has tint tailed to vote for his party candi- 
dates, unless sickness prevented him going 
tn the pulls. He has always been an active 
worker and upon several occasions was the 
party's choice for county commissioner, but. 
the county being strongly Republican, he 
failed of election. Mr. and Mis. Black are 
zealous members of the United Brethren 
church, belonging tn what is known as the 
liberal or progressive part of that body, lie 
is liberal in his support of the church and no 
worthy charitable object or benevolent enter- 
prise bad ever appealed tn him in vain. 

The family of Joseph and Susan Black 
consists of six children, whose names and 
dates nf birth are as follows: Clarinda A.. 
December 10. [850, is unmarried and makes 
her home with her parents: Edward <.i.. Ma\ 
[8, [852, married Mary Richie and lives in 
Seward township; Salem J.. July 9, [854, 
married Catherine Kimes-and lives in Plain 
township; Sarah (.'.. December 23, 1856, 



wife of Willis Boggess, a farmer and stock 
raiser of Prairie township; Cynthia A.. 
March 7. 1N50. unmarried and lives at 
home: James P.. whose birth occurred Jan- 
uary 3, 1 Si. 1. married Catherine Borkert and 
is a resident nf Prairie township. 



ANDREW W. ROSBPl'UI. 

The subject of this review is a well-to-do 
farmer and worthy citizen and an honorable 
representative nf one of Kosciusko county's 
oldest families. J 1 is father, Jacob Rosbrugh, 
a native ^>i Ohio, went to Michigan when a 
young man and there married Malissa 
Grubb, who was also of Ohio birth. As 
early as the spring of 1834 Mr. Rosbrugh 
moved to Kosciusko county and settled in 
the woods 1 >f what is now Plain township, 
where he entered a quarter section of land, 
only half <<\ which he succeeded in saving. 
I le was one of the earliest pioneers of that 
part of the county in which he located and 
in time became one of the substantial farm- 
ers of the community and a leading citizen 
of the township. He reared a large family 
of eleven children, namely: William, 
Benaiah, Andrew \\".. Susan. Julia, Cor- 
nelia. ( )live. Jane. Malissa. Eliza and 
Stephen. 

Andrew W. Rosbrugh is a native of 
Kosciusko county, burn on the 6th day '>\ 
August, [841. When a mere buy he learned 
how tn wield an ax and as he advanced in 
years became unusually skilled in handling 
that implement, being able while still in his 
'teens tn t \'> a man's work in cutting cord 
wood, making rails or in any other kind ••! 
labor pertaining tn wood-craft. When in 
his prime tn cut and put up from the green 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



603 



twi 1 ci >rds 1 if woi id he a msidered an ordinary 
day's work and now, although nearly sixty 
years of age, he can still swing the ax with 
much of his former vigor, easily cutting his 
two cords a day without experiencing a 
great deal of fatigue or discomfort. He was 
a valuable assistant to his father in clearing 
the farm and later took much of the labor of 
cultivating the fields upon his own shoulders. 
proving a dutiful son as long as he remained 
under the parental roof. 

Mr. Rosbrugh stayed with his parents 
until August, 1S62, when he enlisted in 
Company I. Thirtieth Indiana Infantry, for 
three years or during the war. About six 
months after entering the army he was taken 
seriously sick and for a number of weeks 
was under the physician's care in a hospital 
at Bowling Green, Kentucky. His sickness 
not yielding to treatment, he was subse- 
quently discharged and as soon as able to 
travel was sent home, where, after long and 
careful nursing, his former good health 
gradually came hack t< 1 him. He still suf- 
fers at times from the effects of the illness 
contracted while in the service, in conse- 
quence of which he is now the recipient of a 
monthly pension of eight dollars. 

Mr. Rosbrugh early decided to become a 
farmer and began life for himself on forty- 
five acres in Plain township which he pur- 
chased some time after returning from the 
army. By diligence and much hard work he 
brought his little farm to a high state of cul- 
tivation and in due time was enabled to pur- 
chase other real estate until he now is the 
owner of one hundred and thirty-live acres 
and a fraction acres which, under his labors 
and successful management, has been made 
one of the best farms in the township of 
Plain. 

37 



As a tiller of the soil Mr. Rosbrugh is 
up to date and familiar with every detail 
of modern farming. His improvements are 
first class, his dwelling comfortable and sup- 
plied with many of the conveniences which 
make country life pleasant and desirable, and 
the well-tilled fields, the general appearance 
of the premises and the condition of the im- 
plments and live stock bespeak the attention 
and care which are bestowed upon the place. 
Mr. Rosbrugh has surrounded himself with 
many of the comforts of life and believes in 
getting all the good out of the world there 
is in it. Financially he is in independent 
circumstances, with something laid by for a 
rainy day, and within a short time will be 
able to retire from active life with a sufficient 
competence for his declining years. 

Mr. Rosbrugh has been twice married, 
the first time to Miss Minerva Richie, who 
bore him one child, Effie, now the wife of 
James G. Kelly. Some time after the death 
of his first wife, the subject chose for a 
companion Ettie Barrick. daughter of John 
T. and Hettie (Grove) Barrick, the mar- 
riage being solemnized on the 26th day of 
February, 1885. Mrs. Rosbrugh was born 
August 4, 1806, in Kosciusko county and is 
a lady of many sterling qualities, highly re- 
spected by a large circle of friends and ac- 
quaintances and noted for her domestic vir- 
tues and for the wholesome moral influence 
she exerts in the community. She is the 
mother of six children: Elnora, born Au- 
gust 23. 1887; Hazel F., born May 7, 1889; 
Cora E., born October 17, 1891 ; Edna 1)., 
born May 3. 1893: William C. and Wilbur 
F., twins, whose births occurred on the 7th 
day of March, 1897. Mrs. Rosbrugh is a 
devoted member of the Methodist Episcopal 
church, but her husband is not identified 



604 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



with any ecclesiastical organization, al- 
though a believer in the religion of the Bible 
and a liberal contributor to the supp irl 
the gospel. 

ilitically Mr. Rosbrug Repub- 

lican and for a number of years past has 
been quite an active worker in the party. 
He reads much, forms his opinions after 
mature deliberations, and is one of the well- 
posted men of his neighborhood and com- 
munity, lie is not wanting in moral qual- 
ities of a high order, candor and probity 
marking all of his intercourses with his fel- 
low citizens, and he is today pronounced one 
of the worthiest men of the township of 
which he ha- been a lifelong resident, lie 
i- eminently social with his neighbors, pos 
sesses a personality that attracts friends and 
in conversation is always characterized by 
and solidity. Plain and unas- 
suming in demeanor, lie i- respected by all 
win. know him and in a quiet way has ex- 
erted a good influence upon all with whom 
lie comes in c< >ntact. 



NOAH PUNTENNEY. 

ge is constant and general ; ■ 

erations rise and pa-- unmarked away: and 
it i- due to posterity, as well as a present 
gratification, to gather up ami put in im- 
perishable form upon the printed page as 
nearly as possible a true and succinct record 
of the parent" s life. 

Noah Puntenney, of this review, has 
long been numbered with the enterprising 
and substantial men of Kosciusko county, 
and a brief outline of his career from the 
time when, a friendless orphan, he was put 



to his wits end to obtain the bare necessities 
of life, to his present high standing as one 
of the leading agriculturists of northern In- 
diana, cannot fail to be interesting as well 
instructive to the young men into whose 
cradle smiling fortune has cast no gilded 
scepter. .Mr. Puntenney is one of Kosci- 
usko county's native ~, ,us, his natal day be- 
May 31st. of the year 1842. .When the 
subject was a small boy his father died, leav- 
ing a widow and six small children on a 
little backwoods farm in Prairie township, 
consisting of forty acres, but a small part of 
which was at the time in cultivation. 
care fur her offspring and furnish them with 
the plainest necessities taxed t>> the utmost 
the kind mother's ingenuity and resources 
and until her second marriage hard, grind- 
ing toil was her lot and not infrequently did 
hunger knock at her humble cottage door. 
With the advent of a step-father affairs 
fur a time changed for the better, but within 
a few years the kind, patient mother went 
the way of all the living, again leaving her 
offspring to the cold charities of a selfish and 
unfeeling world. Young Noah was thus 
earlv thrown upon his resources and for 
some time thereafter. to use the language of 
another, "was kicked and cuffed from pillar 
to post," hardly knowing one day how the 
next day's 1 1 arid shelter were to be ob- 
tained. Fortunately for him an uncle lh 1 
in ( Hiio, learning of the dire straits to which 
the children were reduced, came and took 
him and his two brothers to his own home, 
where they were cared for until able to shift 
for themselves. When the subject became 
a member of his kinsman's family he was a 
lad of thirteen years, and he remained under 
that gentleman's hospitable roof until his 
fifteenth vear, at which time he returned to 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



605 



Indiana and secured employment as a farm 
hand. Meantime Ins opportunities for ac- 
quiring an education were exceedingly 
meager, at best being limited to a few weeks' 
attendance, now and then, upon the poor 
subscription schools which obtained in north- 
ern Indiana a half century ago. 

Mr. Puntenney continued in the capacity 
of a farm laborer until twenty years old, 
and on attaining his majority went, in the 
spring of 1863, to Colorado and took up a 
claim, with the object in view of engaging 
in agriculture and stock raising. Not long 
after reaching the territory he became im- 
bued with patriotic fervor to enter* the serv- 
ice of the government to assist in crushing 
the rebellion, which was then at its height; 
accordingly, in August of the following year, 
he became a member of Company G, Third 
Colorado Cavalry. This regiment was re- 
cruited for the hundred-days service and Mr. 
Puntenney remained with his command un- 
til the expiration of his period of enlistment, 
1 lecember 29, of the same year, after which 
lie returned to his claim and resumed farm- 
ing. The following three years were marked 
by a large influx of immigrants to all parts 
of the western territories, causing improved 
lands to increase rapidly in value. Seeing a 
favorable opportunity to dispose of his farm 
at a liberal figure, Mr. Puntenney, in the 
spring of 1S67, sold out and returned to 
Kosciusko county, where he was united in 
marriage on the 16th day of April, that year, 
to Miss Electa Guy, of Prairie township, 
daughter of Major James and Nancy 
( Headley) Guy. Mrs. Puntenney's father 
was a native of Virginia and served with 
distinction in the war of 1812, as major of 
a regiment from the Old Dominion state. 
His father came to America from England 



in -an early day and settled in Virginia, 
where his death occurred a great many yeai 
ago. After his marriage Major Guy moved 
to Ohio, thence a number of years later to 
Kosciusko county, where he and wife spent 
the remainder of their days, both dying in 
Prairie township, of which they were early 
settlers. Of their seventeen children Mrs. 
Puntenney was next to the youngest, and her 
life in the main lias been spent within the 
limits of her native county. 

After his marriage Mr. Puntenney be- 
gan farming in Prairie township on land 
leased for the purpose, and he continued as 
a renter until 1876. In that year he pur- 
chased one hundred and twenty acres of un- 
improved land in Tippecanoe township, 
from which, in due time, by hard and long 
continued efforts, he developed a fine farm. 
His improvements are now among the best 
and most valuable in his part of the county, 
consisting of a fine dwelling and barn, good 
outbuildings and fences, while the original 
fertility of the soil has been maintained and 
in places greatly enhanced by a successful 
system of drainage, containing at the pres- 
ent time over eight hundred rods of tiling. 
There are no more methodical or successful 
tillers of the soil in Kosciusko county than 
Noah Puntenney, all conceding his high 
standing as an enterprising and progressive 
agriculturist. Xot only as a farmer and 
business man is he considered representative, 
but in all that constitutes nobility of char- 
acter and good citizenship he has long oc- 
cupied a conspicuous place in the commu- 
nity. He is an able financier, his judgment 
being seldom at fault in matters of business 
policy, and he may justly be regarded as a 
notable example of the exercise of those cor- 
rect principles which win success and earn 



6o6 



tPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



for their possessor the respect and confidence 
of the people. 

Mr. and Mrs. I 'u litem icy have been 
blessed with three children, viz: Harriet. 
born March 29, (868, i- the wife of E. E, 
Morehead; Fannie J., who was born Novem- 
ber 11. 1S71, married I'.. S. Cretchee, a 
farmer and stuck raiser of Washington 
township; Mary M.. the youngest, -whose 
birth occurred mi the 17th 'lay of May, 
1874, is tin- wifi' of John Elder, one of 
Prairie township's successful husbandmen. 
In addition to their own children. Mr. and 
Mrs. Puntenney took to their hearts and 
homes, some years ago, two orphan broth- 
ers, Lewis R. and Roscoe Peterson, inmates 
of an orphan asylum, whom they have cared 
for with the same love and devotion tl 
marked the training of their own offspring. 
They are still living with their foster par- 
ents. 

Mr. Puntenney ha- been a stanch Demo- 
crat ever since old enough i" wield the eled 
ive franchise and Mill takes an active part in 
political affair-, working earnestly for his 
and sparing no reasonable pains to promote 
its success. He 1- an intelligent observer 
and careful reader, keeping himself fully in- 
formed relative t" the greal questions and 
issues of the times, and has the courage of 
hi- convictions upon all matters, political, 
secular and religious, lli- Eraterna] rela 
ti'>ns include the Grand Army of the Re- 
public and Independent Order of Odd Fel- 
lows and his religious faith i- represented b) 

creed of the Methodist Episcopal church. 
IK- i- zealous in religious work, having 
served for a number of years as class leader 
and steward of the congregation to which 
he and his wife belongs, and lie i- also an 
active worker in the Sunday school, serv- 



ing for some time in the capacity of super- 
intendent. 

Mr. Puntennej believes in using the 
mean.- with which he has been blessed t" 
worthy and noble end-, consequently he is 
quite a liberal contributor to the church and 

given with a free hand to promote other 
enterprises having lor their object the moral 
elevation of humanity. lie and his esti- 
mable wife are very popular in their neigh- 
borhood, because of their man) kindly a 
of charity, and the township in which they 
have their home can boast of ii" letter or 
more worthy couple. Born in poverty's 
humble vale, rocked in the cradle of adver 
shy ami educated in the rugged school of 
self-reliance. Mr. Puntenney know- how to 

sympathize with the 1 r and unfortunate, 

and his life ha- been marked by a broad and 
generous Christian charity which in its 
scope take- m all those whose lots have been 
cast in environments tending ourage 

and dishearten. His life ha- been a 

blessing and benediction li> mankind. 



Jul IX F. POUND. 

The gentleman to whom attention is di- 
rected in this review has attained pro- 
nounced prestige by reason of his social and 
commercial high standing in Kosciusl 
county, ami also as an official of his town- 
ship. Mr. Round is one of the representa- 
tive men of Plain township and for some 
years pasl has been prominently identified 
with the industrial and business interests of 
Kosciusko county, lie takes a deep and 
abiding interest in everything pertaining t" 
the material advancement of the township in 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



607 



which he resides and every enterprise in- 
tended to promote the advancement of Kos- 
ciusko county is sure to receive his hearty 
support. He is rated as one of the progres- 
sive citizens of the community in which he 
lives, and the high respect in which he is 
held by all classes of people is a deserving 
compliment to an intelligent, broad-minded 
and most worthy man. 

Mr. Pound is a native of < >hio, having 
been born in Montgomery county, that state, 
on the 22d of March. 1852. His father, 
Philip Pound, was a native of Germany, 
born in Wurtemberg May 16, iS 15, and im- 
migrated tn America with his parents when 
four years of age, settling in Lancaster coun- 
ty, Pennsylvania, where he grew to ma- 
turity. He came to Montgomery county, 
Ohio, in 1839 and there met and married 
Rosannah Martin, who was a native of that 
state. He purchased eighty acres of land on 
the Troy pike, about seven miles north of 
Dayton, where he afterwards resided for a 
number of years. His wife, the mother of 
the subject, died while living here, in De- 
cember. 1853, an d ' ie subsequently married 
Anna Wolf. In 1859 he moved to Elkhart 
county. Indiana, where he purchased one 
hundred acres of land near Goshen, on 
which he settled and resided eleven years. 
While living here he was again bereaved of 
his wife, who died in March, 1862. In 1864 
he married Elizabeth Brown. In 1870 he 
sold out his interests in Elkhart county and 
moved to Kosciusko county, purchasing one 
hundred and twenty acres of land near Os- 
wego, Plain township, on which he after- 
ward- resided until his death, which oc- 
curred in January, 1891. He was an intel- 
ligent and enterprising man, a great reader, 
and was noted for his remarkable memory. 



He was a Republican in politics and always 
took an active interest in the success of his 
party, though never an aspirant for public 
favi irs. He was the father of eight children, 
of whom four grew to maturity, viz: Mary 
C. (now deceased), Sarah E. and John F., 
by his first marriage, and Jacob H. by his 
second marriage. 

John F. Pound, the subject of this re- 
view, came with his father to Elkhart coun- 
ty, and from thence to Kosciusko county in 
1870, where he has practically made his 
home ever since. He was educated in the 
i common schools of Elkhart and this county 
and at the Northern Indiana Normal School 
at Valparaiso, from which institution he 
was graduated in 1876. He afterward en- 
gaged in teaching school in Elkhart and 
Kosciusko counties for fifteen years, mure 
or less, having also taught six winters pre- 
vious to his graduation. In 1880 he pur- 
chased ninety acres of land in section 34, 
Plain township, on which he settled and en- 
gaged in farming, though he continued to 
teach school during the winter months. In 
18S0 lie purchased the general store and 
property of Charles L. White, at Oswego, 
Indiana, which he took charge of in March 
of that year, and has resided here ever since, 
doing a successful business. On coming 
here he was appointed postmaster of this 
place and held the office until 1898, when 
he resigned and accepted an appointment as 
trustee of Plain township, to fill the unex- 
pired term of Charles L. White, and in 1900 
he was elected to that office for a four-years 
term. In this capacity he is now serving, 
and has pri >\ en himself to be one < if the most 
efficient and faithful officials that has ever 
served the people of Plain township. Mr. 
Pound is an ardent supporter of the Re- 



6o8 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



publican part}-, to which he has given much 
of his energies and from which, as already 
stated, he has received mark-; of favor. He 
enters into political work with the same 
force and energy that characterize his ef- 
forts in business affairs. He stands well 
with the opposition and numbers among his 
closest personal friends and warmest ad- 
mirers many who are as radically Demo- 
cratic as he is Republican. Fraternallj 
is a member of St. Leon Lodge, No. 192, 
K. of P., of Leesburg, in which he stai 
high. 

Mr. Pound was united in marriage at 
Oswego, Indiana. September 24, 1884, the 
lad) of his choice being Miss Sarah J. Den- 
man, a native of this county who was born 
August 31, [850. She is a daughter of 
Rev. Aimer and Harriet M. (Wade) Den- 
man, who were both native- of ( )hio', tho 
among the early sett Kosciusko coun- 

ty. Rev. Denman was previously married, 
while in Ohio, to Sarah J. Crane, who bore 
him one child. Abner I'., who died in in- 
fancy. This wife lived only about one v 
after their man sed t<> the 

other world. Subsequently Rev. Denman 
came to Kosciusko county and settled in 
Oswego, ..lure he met and married M 
Wade. He was a Baptist minister and had 
charge of the Oswego church and also the 
church at Warsaw for a number of years 
before hi- death, which occurred April 20, 
[852. His widow quently married 

William Gunter and at present reside- in 
Plain township. Two children were horn 
to her union with Rev. Denman. Sarah J. 
and Mariah E. Mrs. Round was educate', 
in the public schools of tin- county and at 
the - . ille, < >hio, 

frotu which institution -he graduated in 



She began teaching school when 
nineteen year- of age and taught consecu- 
tively until [888, with the exception of f. 
years spent in the Shepardson College. Mr . 
Round i- a consistent member of the Rat • 
church, in which she has been a member 
renteenth year. She i- at pres- 
stmistress of Oswego, having re- 
ceived the appointment at the time her hus- 
band resigned in [898, and lias held the 

ever since. To Mr. and Mrs. Round 
have been horn two children. Philip Harold. 
.1 June S. [888, and Adria Athena. Sep- 
tember [6, 1895. Roth are bright and 
promising children and stand at the h 
of their classes in school, the elder having 
graduated from the common schools of 
district in [901. Mr. and Mrs. Round are 
rdined and congenial people and are highly 
esteemed by all who have bad tl 
tune to meet them. 



OLIVER WRIGHT. 

To -ketch tke life of a busy man of af- 
fairs and in a manner to throw a v 
focussed light upon the principal events of 
his life is the task in hand in portraying the 
career of Oliver Wright, of Leesburg. On 
the 15th day of March, kjoj. he turned his 
fifty-eighth mile stone on life's journey, and 
is now in the zenith of the p >wers. physically 
and mentally, a strong, symmetrically de- 

iped man ami worthy citizen of the thriv- 
ing little town in which he ha- his home. 
The American branch of the Wright family 
appears to have originated in Pennsylvania, 
in whii the subject's grandpan 

wei 1 1. In an early day thev 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



609 



migrate-! to Hocking county, Ohio, where 
Robert Wright, father of Oliver, was born, 
and later moved to Indiana, settling in the 
county of Grant. When a young man Rob- 
ert Wright took up his abode in Wabash 
county, moving thither about the vear 1852, 
shortly after his marriage, in ( Irant county, 
to Miss Margaret Wright, \v,hose family 
name was the same as his own, though they 
were in no wise related. He purchased 
eighty acres in the county of Wabash, which 
he cultivated four years, and then disposed 
of the place and returned to the county of 
Grant, where he spent the remainder of his 
life, dying in the year 1848. His widow sub- 
sequently remarried and is now living in 
Kansas. Robert and Margaret Wright had 
two children, the subject of this review and 
Elisha, the latter dying when five years old. 
Oliver Wright is a native of Indiana, 
born in the county of Wabash on the 5th 
day of March, 1844. Reared in the country 
on a farm, he spent the years of his child- 
hood and early youth in healthful outdoor 
exercise and upon his mind were earl)' im- 
pressed the ]es>ons of industry and thrift by 
which his subsequent years have been char- 
acterized. He attended the common schools 
of winter -seasons until sixteen years of age 
and then left home to make his own way in 
the world. He first obtained employment 
as a farm laborer and after working as such 
for a short time in his native county came 
to the county of Kosciusko, where be spent 
one summer at monthly wages. Returning 
to Wabash count}', he continued farm work 
for a period of six years, at the expiration of 
which time he came back to Kosciusko and 
secured employment on a large farm' near 
the town of Milford. In the vicinity of Mil- 
ford were then living: William and Mary E. 



Dillon and their family, one of the children 
being a daughter, Sarah J., between whom 
and young Wright a warm friendship soon 
sprang up. This finally ripened into a ten- 
der attachment which in due time terminated 
m marriage, which was solemnized on the 
18th day of July, 1863. Mrs. Wright's par- 
ents are of German descent; they came to 
this county from Pennsylvania and rented 
in the township of Van Buren. 

At the time of his marriage Mr. Wright 
had little means and was dependent for a 
livelihood upon any honorable employment 
to which he could turn his hands. After 
working for some time at various kinds 
of labor he turned his attention to stone 
masonry and soon became quite skilled in 
that line, so much so that his services 
were in great demand in various parts 
of the country. Always industrious and 
economical, he soon had all the work he 
could do and by carefully saving his 
earnings was able, in the spring of [882, 
to purchase the comfortable home in Lees- 
burg which he now occupies. 

On moving to Leesburg Mr. Wright ef- 
fected a copartnership in the butcher busi- 
ness with Cyrus Long, which after a short 
time was dissolved by the subject purchas- 
ing the latter's interest and becoming .sole 
proprietor. He also bought the transfer 
business of the town, which he ran for some 
time in connection with his meat market, 
owning the only drays in the place and do- 
ing' a very lucrative business in that line. 
Subsequently he disposed of his meat mar- 
ket, and since then has devoted his entire 
time to the' transferring- business, which has 
continued to grow in magnitude and import- 
ance until he now has all he can possibly do, 
realizing a handsome income. 



6io 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



Mr. Wright is in all respects a self-made 
man and justly entitled to mention among 

the enterprising and progressive citizens of 
the community in which he lives. No one 
who knows him will question his unsullied 
integrity, his unselfish devotion to duty or 
lesirel pri imi >te by every means 
at his command the good of the public, ma- 
terially and morally. Unpretentious, he has 
lived so as to make his fellow men better, 
while his agreeable manners and amiable dis- 
;ition have won for him in a marked de- 
gree the confidence and esteem of his fel- 
low citizens of Leesburg and country ad- 
jacent thereto. 

Mr. Wright is a Democrat in politics, 
having supported the principles and d 
trines of that party ever since old enough to 
51 a ballot. While not a member of any 
church, he has a religious observance of 
truth, a righteous hatred of wrong and a 
warm sympathy for mankind, lie respects 
ecclesiastical organizations for the g 1 in- 
fluence they exert in winning man to a better 
plan of living, but has little regard for the 
many theological theories which divide the 
world into so many contending religious 
factions. He is a well-informed man, with 
am entive memory, everything which 
he reads being stored in a mind which has 
en well disciplined b; much thoughl and 
ervatii >n. 

Mr. Wright is an ardent and earnest ad- 
\ icate of temperance. He has never been 
under the influence of any kind of intoxi- 
cants and believes the drink habit to be the 
\ il of the day. 1 lis private 
' character have been tree from 
of any description and his reputation as an 
honorable, upright man is and always has 
I een such : the respect of his" fel- 



low men. In addition to his regular busi- 
ness he has charge of the express office at 
Leesburg. His high -landing is such that 
the company requires no bond from him, al- 
though he handles much valuable merchan- 
dise, while thousands of dollars every year 
pass through his hands. 

Mr. and .Mrs. Wright are the parents of 
live children : Mary E., born October 7. 

-,. is the wife of Henry Matthews, of 
Turkey Creek township: Dora E. was born 
in the year [867 and died in July. 1 SS 1 : 
\\ illiam D., who was born in June. 1869, 
married Ella K. Cadey and lives in the 
township of Turkey Creek: Ida E. married 
E. E. St rely, a hardware merchant of Syra- 
cuse: Norman, born June 31, [878, is still 
with his parents. Mrs. Wright is a lady of 
many estimable traits, popular with all who 
know her and for some ye, been an 

active worker in the Baptist church of Lees- 
bure. 



WILLIAM II. CLAY. 

Prominent among the enterprising farm- 
ers and worthy citizens of Plain township is 
William 1 1. Clay, who as a civilian has long 
been identified with the material growth and 
de\ eli ipmenl of i me 1 if the best parts of K< ■-- 
ciusko count\. and as a soldier in a war that 
tested the stability of the American institu- 
tions and decided once and for all that a 

.eminent of the and by the peo- 

ple and for the people should not perish 
from the earth." is entitled to the honor and 

»ec1 which all loyal people should accord 
their country's heroes and defenders. 

1 'ri 'in reliable informatii that 

the Clay pei »ple « iriginated in Germany. Just 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



611 



when the first representatives left the father- 
land and settled in Pennsylvania cannot be 
ascertained, as too many years have elapsed 
since that time to make mere oral statements 
of much authentic value. It is known that 
the subject's ancestors left Pennsylvania a 
long time ago and migrated to Stark county 
when that part of Ohio was still in posses- 
sion of the original inhabitants of the land. 
The subject's grandfather purchased from 
the government a tract of land in that part 
of the state and was a typical representative 
of the strong and fearless pioneer class who 
took their lives into their own hands and 
penetrated the dense wilderness, infested 
with wild beasts and painted savages, for 
the purpose of making homes for themselves 
and their pi isterity. 

John Clay, father of William H., was 
born in Pennsylvania and was young when 
the family moved to the new home in Ohio. 
When he grew to manhood be married 
Susan Smith, who bore him children as fol- 
lows: William H.. John A., Jane M., Jef- 
ferson 1.. Francis, Alice and Hiram, all liv- 
ing, the subject being the only member of 
the family in Kosciusko county. 

William H. Clay was born on the old 
family homestead in Stark county, Ohio, on 
New Vear's day, 1840. He grew up on the 
farm and experienced the hard work which 
usually falls to the lot of a country lad. His 
early educational privileges appear to have 
been somewhat meager, but after attaining 
his majority he made up in some degree for 
this deficiency by attending school taught 
by a very accomplished instructor. His 
early life was without incident and it was 
not until the dark and sinister war cloud 
spread over the country that its monotony 
was broken. Realizing that the duty of 



every true American able to bear arms 
pointed with unerring fingers to the South- 
land, where the rebellion was rasing- in all 
its fury, Mr. Clay, on the nth of August. 
1862. enlisted in Company A, Thirteenth 
Ohio Volunteer Infantry, this being his third 
attempt to enter the army. Plis command 
was attached to Grant's army in Tennessee 
and it was m it long after his enlistment un- 
til he received his baptism of fire on the 
bloody field of Stone River. Subsequently 
he shared the fortunes and vicissitudes of 
his comrades in a number of campaigns and 
engagements, notably among which were 
Chickamauga. Missionary Ridge, Lookout 
Mountain, and nearly all the battles around 
Atlanta, Franklin and Nashville, besides 
numerous minor engagements and skir- 
mishes, in all of which he bore himself with 
the bravery becoming a loyal and enthusi- 
astic defender of the nation's honor. Mr. 
Clay was several times wounded, but not 
seriously, and was discharged at the expira- 
tion of his period of enlistment. November, 
1865, at once returning to his home in Stark 
county, Ohio. 

On February 6, 1866, Mr. Clay entered 
into the marriage relation with Miss-Isa- 
belle Sanderson, a native of the Buckeye 
state, born of English parentage. After fol- 
lowing agricultural pursuits in Ohio until 
1872 he disposed of his interests there and 
came to Kosciusko county, Indiana, settling 
in Plain township on a tract of woodland, 
which he has since cleared and developed 
into a good farm. 

Mr. Clay has labored diligently, lived 
well and is now^the owner of a tine home 
and a sufficiency of the comforts of life to 
render any anxiety about the future unnec- 
essary. He is indebted to nobody but him- 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



self for his present competency and knows 
that every dollar in his possession has been 
earned honestly and by honorable mean-. 
He stands well with his neighbors and fel 
low citizens, is respected by all with whom 
lie i- acquainted and has long been recog- 
nized as a gentleman of probity and unim- 
peachable character. He has never been a 
speculator, but contents himself with the 
steady and sure gains which come as the 
legitimate result of industry and well-di- 
rected efforts. 

In his political affiliations Mr. Clay is a 
Republican and a- such is well posted upon 
the issues of the day. hut he has little taste 
.ir inclination for the distractions of active 

itics. lie is a plain, unassuming man of 
the people, a respectable representative of 
the large and influential class that in a quiet 
way mould public opinion and give stability 
to tiie state. Air. and Mrs. (.'lay are mem- 
bers of the Christian church, believing" 
earnestly in it- plain, simple teachings and 

mplifying its greal cardinal truths in 
lives devi ited to G »d's service and u > the up- 
lifting of humanity, lie has been clerk of 
the Leesburg congregation for a numbei 
years and i- also a member id" it- board of 
trustees. Fraternally he i- an Odd bellow. 
having] II the chairs in the local lodge 

to which he belongs, besides representing it 
in different sessions of the grand lodge. 

.Mr. and Mrs. (.day have seven children, 
four sons and three daughters, namely: 
Austin II. is married and live- in Plain 
township; Ida I'., is the wife of (diaries !•".. 
Ilickir.au and lives in the -late of Kansas; 
e W .. who i- a married man. resides 
in Warsaw; Elmer I... also married, is 
farmer of Harrison township; Eva married 
Anson Borkert, of Prairie township, this 



county: Rosa J., who is now Mr-. Howard 
Iv. Goodman, lives on the old farm with her 
father; Bernard, the youngest, is single and 
has newer left the parental home. 



SAMSON JACKSON NORTH. 

ddie man whose history i- given below 
i- of direct English descent. Three broth- 
ers i f the North family in England came to 
America early in the nineteenth century, one 
settling in New England, one in Pennsyl- 
vania, and one. Hiomas, in Virginia. Later 
the latter came to Pickaway county, Ohio, 
where in [805 hi- son Joseph was 
The latter grew to manhi married 

Sarah Russell, of Fairfield county, Ohio, 
and to them wa- born, near Marysville. 
(Jni( m count;., .her 31 1, 

1835, uK ' subject of this ski - mson 

Jackson North. 

When the subject was six years old his 
parents moved to a farm in Delaware coun- 
io, and in his sixteenth year they trav- 
eled overland to Iowa, but in less than a 
year started hack to < Hiio, reaching Milford 
in the spring, but a.- the road- were break- 
ing the} could arther. Joseph rented 
a farm and settled there, vvhi con- 
tinued to live, renting and farming, until 
he retired from active work on account of 
advanced age. Politically he was a strong 
and decided Jacks ian I temocrat, hut never 
fell nor de-ire 1 a public place. llis la-t 

years were spe t with his son Samson, lie 
died June S. 1885, at the age of eighty, hav- 
ing outlived his wife twenty-three years, 
h'er death occurring in [862. 

Samson grew u farm, remaining 



COMPEXDIL'M OF BIOGRAPHY 



613 



with his parents until he was twenty-one. 
He was educated in the common schools and 
was particularly fortunate in having good 
teachers. He himself became a teacher at 
the age of eighteen, teaching the first school 
of the district, in a schoolhouse built in the 
w< "ids near where Nappanee now is, in Kos- 
ciusko county. He continued to teach in the 
winter and worked on the farm in the sum- 
mer, improving his spare hours while teach- 
ing by reading law, this industrious appli- 
cation gaining for him admittance to the 
liar early in 1861. About the middle of the 
summer of 1862 the call reached this county 
for more soldiers to aid in the suppression 
of the Rebellion and Samson was one of 
the first to respond. On July 29 he began 
to raise a company, Lieutenant Timothy 
Loehr having commenced to recruit in the 
count}', and Milford was made the central 
recruiting point. At the election of officers, 
August t8th, Samson North was made cap- 
tain of Company F, Seventy-fourth Indi- 
ana Volunteer Infantry, under Colonel 
Chapman. Richard H. Hall, one of Sam- 
son's former teachers, enlisted in the same 
company, was made orderly, later became 
lieutenant and was killed at Chickamauga. 
Samson served throughout the war, remain- 
ing in command of the company until they 
were mustered out in June, 1865. During 
the entire service he was absent from his 
company but sixty days and then was in the 
hospital with typhoid fever. He was a 
faithful soldier, seeing much hard service, 
and has numerous proofs of many narrow 
escapes. He was wounded in the first battle, 
but the effect was not permanent. He was 
once knocked breathless by a spent bad 
striking him in the stomach. His sabre and 
scabbard are scarred and misshapen by 



bullets and the holes in his belt strap and 
the sleeves of his coat testify to his presence 
in the thickest of the light. He was in the 
battles of Chickamauga and Missionary 
Ridge, in all of the Atlanta campaign and 
at Jonesboro. The company lost heavily at 
Chickamauga because its position was one 
of the most holly contested of the whole 
war. He was in charge of a foraging party 
of twenty-eight men selected from four regi- 
ments for the march to the sea, but rejoined 
his company at the sea and remained with 
Sherman to the close of the war. He 
marched to Washington and took part in the 
grand review in that city. 

Upon returning from the war Mr. North 
resumed his law practice at Milford and, 
being qualified to practice in all courts, he 
has devoted his full time and energies to the 
interests of his clients. In political belief he 
was a Democrat, following the example of 
his father, until 1882. Since 1884 he has 
been a Prohibitionist, taking an active part 
in conventions, making speeches during 
campaigns and giving his help and influence 
to all kinds of temperance work. As a man 
interested in public improvement he has not 
been idle. He assisted in securing the right 
of way tor the Baltimore & Ohio railroad, 
was related to the locating of the Michigan 
division of the Big Four and took part in 
the making of a ditch six miles long from 
Leesburg to Turkey creek, which drained 
land a mile in either direction. In addition 
to this line of improvement he has purchased 
other lands and has brought four hundred 
and eighty acres to a condition of fertility, 
increasing its worth from five dollars to fi its- 
dollars per acre. About thirteen acres of 
this tract is devoted to onion prowing;. 

Mr. North was married August 14, 



614 



■QMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



1862. before going to the war, to Miss Mary 
A. Egbert, of Milford, daughter of John 
and Abigail Egbert. She was born near 
Jonesville, Michigan, but was reared at Mil- 

1 where her father kept hotel for several 
years, and ever since she was a child she has 
lived in the same block in Milford, remain- 
ing in charge of her husband's interests dur- 
ing the war. She was a member of the Bap- 
tist church a1 the time of her marriage, but 
wishing to he in the same church with her 
husband she transferred her membership to 
the Methodist church. of which he lias b 
a member since 1879, and is now a trustee 
of the local church. 

Mr. and Mrs. North have two children 
living. Clara !'».. wife of Robert L. Ruley, 
of Milford, and Mary L. North, an art 

dent, now the wife of Frank Q. Wagner. 
of Chicago, an employe of the [llinois Cen- 
Railroad. Clara was a school teacher 
before her marriage, also a music teacher. 
She has live children. Robert M.. Agnes L.. 
Bertha Elizabeth, Mary }. and Birtney 
lacks' in. 



rOHN F. II WT.Y. 



This gentleman, a native of Indiana and 
of Swiss descent, has resided on his eighty- 
acre farm in Scott township, Kosciusko 
county, Indiana, since November, 1SS1. and 
has won for himself a fine reputation as a 
farmer and citizen. He was born in Elk- 
hart county November 1. 1854. His father. 
Abraham Haney, was born August [6, [826, 
and his wife, April 29, [831. They « 

i in -Switzerland in [851, and came 

to America in [852, landing in New 

irk city in April. From New York they 



went to Columbiana county. Ohio, but the 
same year came to Indiana and for a few- 
months lived in Whitley county. In [853 
they removed to Elkhart county, and in 
in came to Kosciusko county and. resided 
in Jeffei ntil [884, when they 

removed to Marshall county, where the 
deatli of the father occurred October 15. 
[897. The mother still resides in Marshall 
county, greatly venerated by all her neigh- 
bors. These parents had a family of nine 
children, namely : Jacob A., born April 21, 
[853; John F., November 1. 1854; Cathar- 
ine, January 10, 1 S57 : William. April 9, 
[859; Anna M.. December 2, [860; Daniel. 
September 30, [864; died August 31, [898; 
Peter and Edward, twins, born July 29, 
[866, Edward dying in infancy, and Eman- 
uel I'... born August 24, 1872. 

John F. Haney was reared a farmer and 

)• working on the home farm until twelve 
years old, hired out until his eighteenth yi 
as a farm laborer, in the meanwhile faith- 
fully turning over his earnings to his par- 
ents, lie then continued to work on his 
own account as a monthly laborer until [881, 
when he purchased a part of his present 
farm, and later bought the remaining part, 
ami iverted the whole into one of the 

most productive farms of its dimensions hi 
the n iwnship. 

The marriage of Mr. Haney took place 
in Kosciusko county, October 23, t88i, 
Mis- Mary L. Summe. who was born in 
Stark county. Ohio. July 29, i860, and is a 
daughter of Samuel and Catherine 1 Roug 
Summe. Her parents were among the early 
pioneers of Kosciusko county, Indiana, but 
now reside in Franklin township, about four 
alf uuK'- northeasl of Akron. Fulton 

mtv, Indiana. They have a family of ten 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



615 



children, born in the following" order: Mary 
L., Amos, Leonard, Malinda J. (deceased), 
Frederick, Franklin. Alva and Alta ( twins ), 
and Elmer. The union of John F. and Mary 
L. Haney has been crowned by the birth of 
two children, viz: Elsie O., born January 
12, 18S7, and Iven F., born November 8, 
1893, both now, attending school. In poli- 
tics Air. Haney is a Democrat, but has never 
been an office seeker. 

Mr. Haney has sixty-five acres of his 
farm under an excellent state of cultivation 
and all under fence. Fie has placed upon it 
all the improvements, which compare favor- 
ably with others in the neighborhood, and 
has been quite successful in all his under- 
takings. 

♦-•-* 

ISAAC SHEXEMAN. 

One of the most progressive agricultur- 
ists of Scott township, Kosciusko county. 
Indiana, although not one of the most exten- 
sive, is Isaac Sheneman, whose farm pre- 
sents to the eye of the passer-by every indi- 
cation of being under the control of an ex- 
perienced and skillful manager. Mr. Shene- 
man was born in Holmes county, Ohio, 
March 22, 1842, and is the ninth of the 
twelve children born to Frederick and Eliza- 
beth (Fredline) Sheneman, who were born 
in Somerset county, Pennsylvania. There 
their marriage took place, and they later 
migrated to Holmes county, Ohio, where 
they resided until i860, when they came to 
Indiana and settled in St. Joseph county, 
there passing the remainder of their lives. 
Their twelve children we're named, in order 
of birth, as follows : Mary, George, David, 



Jacob, Joseph, Henry, Frederick. Moses, 
Isaac, John. Samuel and Zachariah. 

Isaac Sheneman came to Indiana with 
his parents in i860. He had been reared on 
a farm and as a farmer has met with a sat- 
isfactory returns. In 1800, in'Elkhart coun- 
ty, he married Miss Mary Cripe, but this 
lady was called away in 1870, and Mr. 
Sheneman next married, in February, 1872, 
Mrs. Lucy A. Brubaker, widow of Joel Bru- 
baker and daughter of John B. and Sarah 
Neff. In 187 1 Mr. Sheneman settled in 
Kosciusko county, and came in possession of 
a farm through his wife, and immediately 
after marriage ti w ik possession of his prem- 
ises and started housekeeping, his amiable 
helpmate having- ever since made it one of 
the happiest homes in the township. By 
neither marriage has Mr. Sheneman been 
blessed with children. 

Air. and Airs. Shenefnan are members of 
the German Baptist church and do all in 
their power to advance its work of evangel- 
ism, contributing freely of their means also 
towards its temporal maintenance. They 
have lived in consonance with its doctrines, 
and have gained an enviable reputation 
among their neighbors and many warm- 
hearted friends f< ir their personal good 
qualities. 

Air. Sheneman's compact farm of eighty 
acres is a model in itself, all, with the ex- 
ception of fourteen acres, being in a state 
; of excellent cultivation ami improved with 
, all necessary buildings to make farm life de- 
sirable and, under his experienced manage- 
ment, decidedly profitable. 

In politics Air. Sheneman affiliates with 
the Republican party, which he. actively aids 
on all occasions, but never has sought re- 



6i6 



COMPEXIML'M OF BIOGRAPHY. 



compense in the way of seeking public office. 
He has in his possession a valuable relic in 
the shape of an old parchment deed, dated 
September _•. [839, and bearing the signa- 
ture of President Martin Van Buren. 



THOMAS J. ROHRER. 

Among the successful fanners and self- 
made men of Kosciusko count) the subject 
of this sketch occupies a conspicuous place. 
lie is a native of Indiana and son of John 
and Catherine Ann 1 LJnrue) Rohrer, the Ea 
ther born in Preble county, < Hiio, September 
3, [826, and the mother in the same st; 
February 18, 1827. When six years 
John Rohrer was brought to Elkhart county 
and has spent his life since thai time on the 
place which he cleared and developed in his 

young m.mh 1. His wife, whose maiden 

name was Catherine \nn (Jnrue, has borne 
him ten children whose names and dates of 
births and other facts connected with tl 
respective histories are as Follows: \ 1 l 
Francis M. was born October 1. [849; he 
took for his wife Marj Brothers and is the 
lather of two children. Romaine and one 
that died in infancy; he is a carpenter by 
trade and lives in the city of Goshen, Indi- 
ana. 1 _• ) William W\, a carriage painter 
working at his trade at New Paris, Elkhart 
county, was horn May 7. 1N51. and married 

ra Elsworth. 1 3 ) Rebecca A., born 
February 15. 1853, ' s tne widow of the late 
1). W. Peoples, who was killed some years 
ago by a railroad locomotive; not seeing 
rapidly approaching train, he drove to the 
track and was struck by the engine and 
thrown nearly one hundred and eighty feet, 
his bodv being mangled almost beyond 1 



ognition. Mrs. Peoples is the mother of 

these children. Nellie, Melvin. Clara, Maude, 
Blanch and Zoe. 141 James M. and (5) 
Thomas R. are twins, their births occurring 
on the qth day of October, 1855. James 
married Phcebe Johnson and has a family of 
children. Cart, Irvin. Ernest and Hazel; he 
Eormerl) a carpenter, but of recent 
years has devoted his attention to farming. 
(6) Sarah A. was horn February i<>. [858, 
and died March 31, [859. (7) Mary E. 
born January J4. i860, is the wife of I leurv 
Ybtter, a shoemaker of Union Mills, this 
state. (8) John M. was horn February 28, 
r862, married Linnie Harper and has two 
children, Ruth and (den \ 1; he is a farm- 
er of Elkhart county. (9) Emma, wife of 
Melvin Sheline, was horn August 5, [864 
and has children as follows : ( roldie, Gladys 

! Gordon. ( 101 Ira. a manufacturer of 
tents and awnings at Boise City, Idaho, is ,1 
single man. horn January _>. [867. 

John Rohrer. the father, cleared about 
one hundred acres of land by his own labor 
and is now a farmer of Elkhart county. 
an extensive raiser of live stock, devoting 
greater part of his attention to the latter. 
lie is a prosperous man and prominent citi- 
zen of his community. In politics he i- a 
stanch supporter of the Republican party, in 
religion a member of the Allbright church: 
Ins u ife is a Metlx idist. 

Thomas J. Rohrer first saw the light of 
day on the family homestead in Elkhart 
county and grew to manhood with a practi- 
cal understanding of what is meant by hon- 
il and frugal thrift. His educational 
discipline, acquired in the common schools, 
has been effectually supplemented bj a thor- 
ough training in active life and today he is 
an intelligent, well-rounded man. fully quali- 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



6i 7 



fied f< ir the usages and experiences which 
the world brings to individuals of his physi- 
cal and mental stamp. Like a dutiful son 
lie rendered valuable assistance to his father 
until his twenty-sixth year, when he left 
In ime and entered upon his own career as a 
farmer. October 10, 1882, was the day 
when Thomas J. Rohrer and Miss Delia, 
daughter of George and Mary (Davison) 
Adams, were united in the bonds of holy 
wedlock, a union blessed with the following 
children : Otto Lee, born January 17, 1884; 
George E., horn May 28, 1887; Lura A., 
September 1, 1889: Raymond D. and Ruba 
M., twins, whose births took place on the 1st 
day of April. i<SoN. 

After his marriage Mr. Rohrer rented a 
farm near the village of Syracuse, this coun- 
ty, and one year later moved to the county 
of Elkhart where he continued to cultivate 
leased land for a period of five years. Re- 
turning to Kosciusko county he rented the 
place where he now lives until 1900, when he 
si >ld eight} - acres of land in Elkhart county 
which he then owned and invested the pro- 
ceeds in his present home, consisting of one 
hundred and eighty and a half acres. Nine- 
ty acres of Mr. Rohrer's farm is in cultiva- 
tion, the balance being valuable timber land 
from which in due time he expects to realize 
a respectable sum of money. The neat and 
thrifty appearance of the place, the good 
fences, substantial buildings and other evi- 
dences of prosperity attest the interest Mr. 
Rohrer has manifested in his work and man- 
agement, the farm and everything it con- 
tains bespeaking the presence of a scientific 
and up-to-date agriculturist. In the fields 
may be seen a herd of full-blooded short- 
horn cattle, among the best in the county, a 
large drove of line swine, in addition to 



which there are from eight to ten valuable 
Norman horses well adapted to heavy draft 
work and general farming purposes. Mr. 
Rohrer has met with well-merited sue:- ss 
as a raiser of stock and grain, and he also 
gives considerable attention to the usual 
vegetable crops and fruits, without which 
no farm is complete. 

Like his father, Mr. Rohrer is an un- 
compromising adherent to the Republican 
party and takes pains to keep himself fully 
informed upon state and national legislation 
and the great issues which to a large degree 
shape and control the destiny of the country. 
Fraternally he holds membership with 
Camp No. 6373, Modern Woodmen of 
America, at Milford, aside from which he is 
not identified with any benevolent or relig- 
ious organization. Mr. Rohrer is decidedb 
a self-made man. having accumulated the 
ample fortune which he now' enjoys by hard 
and long-continued toil, assisted by his faith- 
ful wife, who has been his active colaborer 
and wise counsellor ever since the two 
started upon life's journey together. They 
are highly esteemed by their neighbors and 
Friends and in every respect have shown 
themselves worthy the respect in which they 
are held. Mr. Rohrer is a good man and 
true and it is to such as he that the county 
of Kosciusko is larg'ely indebted for its 
wonderful advancement along agricultural, 
industrial and other lines. 



HENRY J. BERGER. 

One of the most thoroughly practical 
and successful agriculturists of Scott town- 
ship. Kosciusko count}-. Indiana, is Henry 



6i8 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



I. Berger, who was born in Marshall count) 
April 24, 1850. His parents, Henry and 
Sophia (Zimmer) Berger, were respectively 
born in Germany July 1. [814, and Decem- 
ber -'4. 1823. They came to the United 

tes with their parents in 1832 and were 
reared chiefly in Ohio, but subsequently 
came to Indiana and were married in M 
shall county in .May. 1843, alUT which evenl 
the) settled on a farm near Bremen, on 
which they resided until [886, when they re- 
tired to the village; there the father died 
April 9, [899, and there the mother still has 
her residence. Eleven children were born 
to these parents and were named in order of 
I mli. as fi illow - : ( Catharine, Sophia I 
ceased I, Henry J., Jacob, < ieorge, Elizabeth, 
.Matilda. Charles, John ('.. and two who 
die 1 in infancy unnamed. 

Henry J. Berger was born on a farm 
and was reared as a farmer, which has been 
the business of his whole life; and judging 

from hi- success, 1 ther calling would 

Letter have suited him. lie was educated 
in the sch n '1- of his home district and filially 
aided on the home farm until his twenty- 
fourth year. October 2, [873, he married. 
in .Marshall county, Miss Margaret Knob- 
lock, a daughter of Frederick and Elizabeth 
(Laudanum) Knoblock, and to this union 
was born one child, Sarah E., new deceased. 
.Mr-. Margaret Berger passed away, her 

ah taking place March 9, 1 S75. and as 
his second choice for a life partner Mr. Ber 
ger led tn the marriage altar. January 9, 
[879, Miss Mary Ringgenberg, who was 
born in Marshall county. April 27, [853, 

d is a daughter of Christian and Catherine 
1 Burgener) Ringgenberg. The latter were 
among Marshall county's early settlers, and 
were the parents of thirteen children, eleven 



id whom they named, in order of birth, as 
follows: Christian. John, Catherine. Klixa^ 
beth, .Mary. Lydia, Jacob, Peter, Loui 

1 ami Samuel: two died in infancy un- 
named. 

In April, 1876, Mr. Berger purchased 
hi- present farm in Scott township, Kosci- 
usko count}, on which he settled immediate- 
ly after his marriage. Of the one hundred 
and six acres which this farm comprises Mr. 
Berger has placed about eighty acre- u 
cultivation, all of which he ha- fenced in. 
lie I11- erected also a comfortable dwelling 
and comm< "lions outhi >uses on the place, and 
now has as pleasant a home as there is in 
the township. Here, on an income-produc- 
ing farm, in company with his wife and 
eight children, he is passing the happ) hours 
away, contented with his lot in life and com- 
placent in the happiness of his children, who 
are named Ervin E., Stella S.. Laura I... 
Ada S., Milton H.. Minnie 1'... Rosa M. and 
M. 

.Mr. Berger is a Republican in his politi- 
cal views, and religiously he and wife 
are members of the Evangelical Association. 
To the latter they are liberal contributors 
financially and are conscientious in follow- 
ing it- teachings. They maintain a high 
position socially and their influence is ever 
exerted for the moral and material advance- 
ment of their neighbors and fellow -citizens. 



J \COB HEPL1-.K. 



This enterprising and well-to-do farmer 
was horn on the farm which he still occu- 
pies in section 12, Scott town-hip. Koscius- 
ko county, Indiana. October [8, 1S42, and 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



619 



is a son of David C. and Magdalena (Yaul- 
ky) Hepler, of whom mention is also made 
in the biographical notice of an elder brother, 
Samuel C. 

Jacob Hepler is the sixth child in a fam- 
ily of eight children, was born on a farm and 
was educated in a common school. Until 
he reached his twenty-seventh year he re- 
sided on the home place, assisting his father 
in its cultivation, but was married February 
18, 1864, to Miss Nancy X. More, also a na- 
tive of Kosciusko county and a daughter of 
William and Anna More, early settlers. 

After ceasing to work for his father, 
Jacob and his brother Isaac purchased the 
old homestead, which they divided, Jacob 
taking' the north one hundred and forty- 
seven acres and forty acres in Scott town- 
ship, and Isaac the south part. In 1877, 
J&cob erected! a handsome dwelling, in which 
he has since resided. He also built a fine 
bank barn, 40x70 feet, in 1883, and all other 
necessary i lutbuildings. 

Mrs. Nancy N. Hepler was called away 
March 6, 1877, leaving seven children, 
namely: Mary, Daniel, Rosa A., Mar- 
garet E., William, Albert A. and Nancy. 
• November 4, 1877, Mr. Hepler led to the 
marriage altar Miss Amelia A. Rose, who 
was horn in Cambria county. Pennsylvania, 
March 23. 1850, a daughter of Joseph J. 
and Elizabeth (Arters) Rose, natives of the 
same state and horn respectively in 1830 and 
1825. They were married in Cambria coun- 
ty, Pennsylvania, and came to Kosciusko 
count v, Indiana, in 1804, but remained here 
a short time only and then went to Elkhart 
county. There they resided two years and 
then came back to Kosciusko county, where 
the mother died September 28, 1883. The 
father now resides in Nappanee, Elkhart 

38 



county. Mr. and Mrs. Rose had a family of 
eight children, viz : Catherine, Amelia A., 
Rachel, Mary. Emanuel, Israel, Joseph K. 
and one that died in infancy. To Mr. and 
Mrs. Hepler has been born one son, Irvin. 
Mr. and Mrs. Hepler are consistent mem- 
bers of the Lutheran church and have so 
lived as to win the respect of the entire com- 
munity, to whom they have endeared them- 
selves by their many amiable personal quali- 
ties and kindly acts. Mr. Hepler may well 
he classed as a pioneer, having lived in this 
county over half a century. 

Mr. Hepler is a Democrat in politics and 
at present he is a member of the advisory 
board. He has in his possession an old 
parchment deed, executed during the admin- 
istration of President Van Buren. 



JAMES E. HOLLAR. 

Devoting his energies to agriculture, the 
subject of this sketch enjoys distinctive pres- 
tige as one of the most enterprising fanners 
in the county of Kosciusko. He is one of 
the largest land owners in Jefferson town- 
ship and in point of general improvements, 
especially in the matter of buildings, his 
place is not excelled by any farm in this part 
of the country. Mr. Hollar came to Indiana 
with hut a limited amount of capital. With 
a liberal endowment of self reliance, a clear 
brain, a strong will and a determined pur- 
pose, he overcome the many discouraging 
circumstances which marked his arrival, re- 
moved the numerous obstacles from his 
pathway, gradually forged to the front and 
in the course of time found himself in pos"- 
session of the ample fortune which he today 
enjoys. 



620 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



Mr. Hollar's people were among the 
early German inhabitants of Virginia. His 
father, Alexander Hollar, was bom in that 
state, as was also his mother, Eva Price. 
After their marriage these parents settled 
in the county of Shenandoah, where they 
spent the remainder of their days on a farm. 
the father being one of the well-known citi- 
zens of the community where he lived. 
Their eight children were named as follows: 
Amos. Sarah. Harvey, Joseph, James E., 
Levi. Silas and ( teorge W. 

James E. Hollar, to a brief review of 
whose life the reader's attention is now re- 
spectfully invited, was horn on the home 
place in Shenandoah county. March 9, 185 1. 
He was fortunate in having favorable sur- 
roundings during his childh 1 and youth, 

the farm being situated in a beautiful and 
healthful locality and the labor required of 
him being suitable to his years and strength. 
He received his rlrst educational training in 
a subscription school taught in a building 
which his father erected upon his own farm 
at his own expense, there being no house in 
the neighborhood especially designed for 
public school purposes. Realizing the need 
of better schools than the indifferent ones 
that had been formerly taught at divers 
places in the community. Mr. Hollar put up 
the above building primarily for the educa- 
tion of hi- own children and secondly for 
the children of any of his neighbors who 
saw lit to scmkI their children to it for instruc- 
tion. He also procured the services of a 
competent teacher and the work done in the 
little school house on the Hollar farm gave 
an impetus to the cause of education in that 
locality, which subsequently led the people 
to take greater interest in the intellectual de- 
velopment of their children. Young James 
attended school of winter seasons until nine- 



teen years of age, -pending the rest of the 
time in the fields at such work a- is required 
on a Virginian farm. When nineteen he en- 
tered upon an apprenticeship to learn car- 
] entr) and in this engaged about six months 
at a monthly remuneration of >ix dollars. 
Being naturally skilled in the use of tools, 
be soon acquired much more than ordinary 
efficienc) as a workman, and after receiving 
instruction for the above length of time he 
was sufficiently advanced in the trade to un- 
dertake building upon his own responsibil- 
ity. In the spring of 1S70 he left home and 
started into the world to make his own liv- 
ing and if possible acquire something more 
than a mere existence, as he was determined 
to achieve success if it lay within his power 
so to do. Like the majority of young men. 
beset up his goal in the west and with little 
means at his command started afoot upon 
his journey in which there was no deviation 
or break until he reached Licking county. 
Ohio, where he stopped temporarily to earn 
a little money, doing a job of clearing for a 
farmer. After working two weeks and re- 
ceiving his pay. the young pedestrian pro- 
ceeded on the journey until he came to a lit- 
tle village by the name of Melmore, in the 
county of Seneca, where he hired to one 
Samuel 1 '.rooks, a local carpenter, in whose 
employ he continued about one year. At 
the expiration of that time he entered into 
a partnership with that gentleman and until 
1873 worked in several parts of Seneca 
county, the meanwhile adding to his reputa- 
tion as an architect and builder. 

Having accumulated about five hundred 
dollars at his trade. Mr. Hollar in the above 
year came to Kosciusko county. Indiana, and 
not long after his arrival went in partnership 
with his brother Joseph, for the purpose ol 
purchasing a tract of land in Jefferson town- 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



621 



ship. The land was all in the woods and the 
two brothers at once proceeded to clear and 
develop it, a work which he prosecuted very 
industriously and with most encouraging 
results. At the end of one year Mr. Hollar 
again turned his attention to his trade as 
there was then a great demand in Kosciusko 
county for experienced carpenters. He 
erected a number of buildings of various 
kinds in different parts of Jefferson and 
other townships and when thus engaged 
continued to clear his land and add to its 
improvements. During the fourteen years 
following he divided his time between car- 
pentering and agriculture, meanwhile, with 
the assistance of his brother, extending the 
■area of cultivable land until the farm ranked 
with the best 4 improved and most valuable 
in the township of Jefferson. At the ex- 
piration of the fourteen years he quit his 
trade and devoted all of his time to agricult- 
ural pursuits, which he prosecuted with such 
energy and success as won for him the repu- 
tation of one of the most enterprising and 
progressive farmers in the community. Sub- 
sequently he purchased a saw-mill and en- 
gaged in the manufacture of lumber, about 
the same time investing considerable money 
in a tile factory, which proved a very for- 
tunate enterprise. Mr. Hollar operated the 
saw-mill with much success about seven 
years, and then again took up agriculture. 
The second year after coming to this coun- 
ty the farm was divided, Joseph taking the 
west half of the farm and James the east. 
While partners their relations were most 
amicable and 'being men of much more than 
ordinary judgment and thrift, their success 
was commensurate with the energy dis- 
played in their various undertakings. After 
the property was divided James E. made 



other and greater improvements on his farm, 
among which was the large and elegant 
brick residence erected in 1889 at a cost of 
several thousand dollars. He also added 
to his real estate from time to time until his 
place contained four hundred and forty-nine 
acres, its present area. This is one of the 
model farms of Jefferson township and there 
are few if any in the county that are better 
improved or represent a greater value per 
acre. Mr. Hollar is a progressive agricult- 
urist and prosecutes his work upon quite an 
extensive scale. He is also an excellent 
judge of fine stock and in connection with 
general farming devotes considerable time 
to cattle, hogs and horses, in the raising and 
selling of which he has been quite success- 
ful. 

As a man and citizen Mr. Hollar is high- 
ly esteemed, standing for all legitimate pub- 
lic improvements and taking an active inter- 
est in the material development of his town- 
ship and county. He takes large and liberal 
views of life, there being nothing narrow or 
bigoted in his nature, and keeps himself well 
informed upon the leading topics of the day. 
He is one of the intelligent, broad-minded 
men of his neighborhood and has always en- 
deavored to use his influence so as to make 
wiser and better the people of the commun- 
ity in which he lives. 

Mr. Hollar is a married man and the fa- 
ther of ten children. His wife, formerly 
Miss Elizabeth Price, daughter of Samuel 
and Rachel (Hulvy) Price, was born in 
Ohio, March 14, 1854, and the ceremony 
which changed her name to the one she now 
bears was solemnized on the 17th day of 
April. 1874. The following are the names 
of the children constituting the family of 
Mr. and Mrs. Hollar, together with the birth 



622 



C0MPEXD1UM OP BIOGRAPHY. 



of each; Samuel A., April 5, 1875; William 
H., November [3, [876; Eva A.. March- 13, 
[878; James E., September 29, 1879; 
George W., June i_\ 1881; John E., Au- 
gust 30, iNNj; Grover C, December 15. 
[884. died August ..'3. 1899: Hnos E., Oc- 
tober 11. 1886; Charles M., March 24, 
[888; and Amos R., March 4. 1892. Mr. 
Hollar is a Democrat in politics, while fra- 
ternally he is a member of Lodge No. 418, 
F. & \. M., and Lodge No. 478, 1. O. < >. F., 
both at Milford, Indiana. Mrs. Hollar is a 
member of the German Baptist church. 



JOSEPH HOLLAR. 

Prominent among the successful farmers 
and representative men of Jefferson town- 
ship is Joseph Hollar, a Virginian by birth 

and an Indiana man by adoption. His par- 
ents, Alexander and Eva (Price) Hollar, 
were natives of the Old Dominion state and 
descendants "i" early pioneer German set- 
tlers. He lived in Shenandoah county, 
where the father acquired local repute as a 
farmer and citizen. He was one of the 
prominent men of his community, took a 
leading part in public affairs, especially in 
the matter of education, of which he was an 
ardent friend and liberal supporter. By 
reference to the sketch of James E. Hollar, 
a brother of the subject of this review, it 
will he learned that Alexander Hollar at his 
own expense erected a house for school pur- 
poses upon his land, furnished it with the 
necessary appliances and fuel and then se- 
cured the services of a teacher who opened 
a school for the accommodation of the chil- 
dren 1 if the neighb irh< » id. 

Joseph Hollar was horn in the county 



of Shenandoah. June 23. [849, and spent the 
years of his childh 1 and youth 1 in the fam- 
ily homestead. He received his education in 
the school taught on his father's farm and 
until nineteen years old contributed his time 
and energies to the family support. When 
about nim-teen he engaged with George W. 
Smootz to learn the millwright's trade at 
a monthly compensation of eight dollars for 
the first year. His services proving valu- 
able, his wages were increased at the end of 
one year to twelve dollars per month and he 
continued with his employer until 1870. In 
April of that year, in company with his 
brother, lames [•;. Hollar, he started on fool 
to make his fortune in the West and the two 
proceeded on their way t < ■ Licking county, 
Ohio, where they received employment for 
a limited period with a framer. After work- 
ing two weeks clearing, chopping w 1. 

splitting rails, etc.. they took a train for 
Tiffin, Ohio, whence they proceeded to the 
town of Melmore, Seneca county, where an 
uncle by the name of Jacob I 'rice was living. 
Shortly after reaching the home of his re- 
lation Joseph went to work for a farmer in 
the neighborhood at twenty dollars per 
month and at the expiration of the second 
month invested his wages, amounting to 
forty dollars, in a set of carpenter's tools. 
With these he began working with William 
Little and Samuel Brooks, well-known local 
builders, and. although without previous ex- 
perience other than as a millwright, he was 
paid the sum of one dollar and a half per day 
for his services. After continuing with 
those gentlemen a short time he started out 
for himself and SOOri found work with other 
parties at better wages. He continued car- 
pentry in Seneca at two dollars per day until 
1873, in 1 lecemher of which year he and his 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



623 



brother came to Kosciusko county-, Indiana, 
and invested their combined capital in a 
tract of wood land lying in Jefferson town- 
ship, the same on which he has ever since 
lived. After purchasing their land the two 
brothers returned to Ohio for the purpose of 
settling' up their business affairs, this done 
they came back in January, 1874, and began 
the work of clearing a farm and laying the 
foundation of their future homes. The two 
brothers continued as partners in farming 
and carpentering and later saw-milling and 
the manufacture of drain tile until Septem- 
ber, 1874, when they divided their interests 
and each took possession of his half of the 
land. Joseph took the western part of the 
place and has since bent all his energies to 
its improvement. In October following the 
division of the property he built a substan- 
tial dwelling' and since that time other 
buildings have been erected and a gen- 
eral system of improvements inaugurated 
and carried to successful completion ; his 
farm is now classed with the best and most 
valuable in Jefferson township. In 1893 he 
replaced his first residence with a fine mod- 
ern brick edifice, beautiful in design, hand- 
somely furnished and finished with the lat- 
est conveniences which make the house 
wife's lot an enviable and desirable one. 
His is one of the most attractive and rural 
bomes in the county of Kosciusko, as he has 
spared neither pains nor expense to make it 
a dwelling place for a farmer who believes 
in progress and improvement, as well as in 
the nobility of his chosen calling-. The farm, 
which contains one hundred and sixty acres, 
is well fenced and drained and every acre 
devoted to agricultural purposes has been 
developed to its full productive capacity. 
Mr. Hollar, like his brother, not only farms 



extensively, hut adds very materially to his 
income by raising and selling live stock. He 
keeps on his farm quite a number of fine 
cattle and hogs, and also pays considerable 
attention to horses, but does not make a busi- 
ness of raising the latter for the market. 

Mr. Hollar's life has been quiet and un- 
eventful, at the same time productive of 
good todiis fellow man. He attends strictly 
to his own affairs, although interested in the 
growth and development of the community, 
and his name is usually connected with all 
enterprises for the common good. He is a 
man of unswerving integrity and keen 
judgment of men and things, and his pur- 
poses once formed are generally carried out 
to the letter. All who know him speak in 
the highest terms of his standing as a neigh- 
bor, friend and citizen and it is a compli- 
ment worthily bestowed to class him with 
the representative, self-made men of his 
adopted township and county. 

Mr. Hollar and Miss Eva Tusing, daugh- 
ter of Nicholas and Catherine (Biller) 
Tusing, natives of Virginia, were united in 
marriage on the nth day of October. 1874. 
Mrs. Hollar was born October 26, 1849, m 
Shenandoah count}', Virginia, and has pre- 
sented her husband nine children, Alexan- 
der X.. Charles L., George W., Viola M., 
Cora I., Irving J., Loren A., Clarence V. 
and Fremont C, all living but the two 
daughters. Viola and Cora. 



JOHN MARQUART. 

George Marquart, the father of the sub- 
ject of this review, was one of the sturdy, 
industrious citizens which Germany has con- 
tributed to the United States. He belongs 



624 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



to that large and eminently respectable class 
of foreigners that became loyal supporters 
of American institutions and by their in- 
dustry and enterprise did so much to pro- 
mote the material development of our coun- 
try. George Marquart married in the 
fatherland Miss Mary A. Kurtz and about 
the year [833 left his native sin ires and 
came to the New World. He first settled 
in Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, whither 
many of his countrymen had preceded him. 
and after living there about three years 
changed his abode t" Stark county, Ohio. 
He made his home in the latter state until 
1854, at which time he came to Kosciusko 
countw Indiana, and settled on a farm in 
Jefferson township, which his son. the sub- 
ject of this sketch, now owns and cultivates. 
lie resumed his labors as tiller of the soil 
and after a long and useful life he bade 
adieu to earth and earthly things and en- 
tered another and a happier state of exist- 
ence: he died in 1X71). his wife preceding 
him to the other world by about nine years. 
Of tlie live children born to George and 
Mary A. Marquart. the subject is the only 
one living; the others were Christian. Eliza- 
beth, a twin sister of John, George and 
Mary C. 

John Marquart was horn in Lancaster 
count). Pennsylvania, February 10. 1839, 
the same year which witnessed his parents' 
removal to Stark county, Ohio, lie spent 
fifteen years of his life in the latter county 
and state, meantime attending at intervals 
the country school and assisting his father 
•with the labors of the farm. In [854 he ac- 
companied the family to the county of Kos 
ciusko and from that time until attaining 
his majority did his full share in clearing 
and cultivating the home place and con- 



tributing to tlie support of his parents. 
brothers and sisters. He was reared to agri- 
cultural pursuits and after coming to letter- 
s' hi t< .\\ nship diil not leave the parental r< m if. 
hut continued to look after the farm and his 
father's interests until the latter's death. 
His brothers and sisters dying, the place fell 
to him and lie has since cultivated it with 
success and financial profit, until it is now 
one of the best improved and most valuable 
farms in the township of Jefferson. 

Mr. Marquart has added to the original 
place and now owns two hundred and sixty 
acres of fine land, admirably situated in one 
of the richest agricultural districts of tlie 
county, two hundred acres being in culti- 
vation, the remainder heavily wooded with 
fine timber. 

Mr. Marquart has led a Aery active and 
industrious life, from his boyhood knowing 
little by practical experience of the meaning 
of idleness. He helieves in earning hread by 
the sweat of the brow and. fully realizing the 
true dignity of honest toil, has bent his en- 
ergies in the direction of providing com- 
fortably for himself and family and making 
the world better by his presence. As a farm- 
er there are none lietter. and as a man he 
combines within himself the sterling quali- 
ties of head and heart which makes the use- 
ful neighbor, the steadfast, faithful friend 
and the enterprising, energetic citizen. He 
is well known among the people of this and 
other parts of the county as a quite, unas- 
suming man. honest and upright in all of 
his dealings, ever ready to lend a helping 
hand to a friend .and fulfilling to the bt 
his ability all requirements expected of a 
citizen of a great and enlightened common- 
wealth. He is one of the financially strong 
and reliable men of his community, being 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



025 



the possessor of a competence sufficiently 
ample to enable him to spend the remainder 
of his days in plenty and content. 

Mr. Marquart was married in this coun- 
ty April 22, 1873, to Mi ss Elizabeth Oster, 
daughter of William and Elizabeth (Sarr- 
bruck I ( )ster, the union resulting" in eight 
children, namely: Mary A., Emma E. (de- 
ceased), Malinda (deceased). Matilda, 
Emanuel (deceased), George. John (de- 
ceased ) and Clara. By reference to this list 
of children it will be seen that the hand of 
affliction has been laid heavily upon the lives 
of Mr. and Mrs. Marquart. Like a refining 
tire, the visitations of the death angel may 
he blessing's in disguise. To the unbeliever, 
such dispensations of Providence are but 
clouds of midnight darkness with not a ray 
to dissipate the intensity of the gloom: to 
those who look upon this life as a prepara- 
tion for a higher and holier state, they are 
among the afflictions that tend to work out 
"a far more exceeding and eternal weight 
of glory". Mr. Marquart is a Democrat in 
politics, and in religion a Lutheran, while 
his wife belongs to the Evangelical Associa- 
tion. 



DAVID K. MILLER. 

The family of which the subject of this 
review is an honored representative is of 
German lineage and dates its history in 
America from a very early period. The first 
of the Millers to come from Germany to the 
United States were three brothers, one of 
whom, David, was the great-grandfather of 
David K. Among his children was Mich- 
ael C. Miller, the subject's grandfather, 
who in a very earlv day settled in Mont- 



gomery county, Ohio, where he purchased 
land and became a prosperous tiller of the 
soil. He was twice married and reared 
perhaps the largest family in the county of 
.Montgomery, the two wives bearing him 
twenty-two children. The oldest son was 
John C. Miller, whose birth occurred Octo- 
ber 15, 1807. He was reared a farmer and 
followed that vocation all of his life, first in 
Montgomery county. Ohio, and later in the 
county of Darke, where he entered a tract of 
land about seven miles northeast of the city 
of Greenville. He married in the former 
county Miss Gertrude Krider. who was 
born November 15. 181 5. and it was shortly- 
after taking to himself a wife that he moved 
to the farm in Darke county on which he 
spent the remainder of his life. Mrs. Miller 
died August 29, 1887, after bearing her hus- 
band twelve children, namely: Michael K., 
Aaron K., David K., Sarah. Mary, Moses, 
Noah, Daniel, Fannie. Catherine and two 
that died in infancy unnamed. John C. 
Miller departed this life on the 2nd day of 
September, 1891. 

David K. Miller, whose name introduces 
this sketch, was born in Darke county. Ohio, 
May 22, 183d. He learned his first lessons 
of practical life on the farm as soon as old 
enough to do manual labor and in such 
schools as the country afforded received a 
fair English education. Reared to agricul- 
tural pursuits, he decided to make farming 
his life work and with little exception his 
attention has been devoted to tilling the soil 
ever since leaving- his parental home: the ex- 
ception referred to was a limited experience 
in operating a saw-mill and several years 
spent at the carpenter's trade. 

Mr. Miller was married in Darke county. 
Ohio. November 18, i860, to Miss Magda- 



626 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



leria Wise, whose birth occurred in tin- same 
county "ii the 20th day of December, 1840. 
Her parents, Jacob and Christena (Shope) 
Wise, natives of Pennsylvania and Ohio, re- 
spectively, were married in the latter state 
and sometime thereafter moved from 
-Miami county to the county of I >arke. where 
the father died April 28, 1877. in his sixty- 
seventh year. The mother subsequently 
went to live with one of her daughters in 
Preble county, where her death occurred on 
the 25th of April. [898. Jacob and Chris- 
tena Wise were the parents of twelve cliil- 
dern whose names are as follows: Benja- 
min, Isaac. Magdalene, Moses, Barbara, 
Sarah. Fannie, Jacob, Aaron, Samuel, Noah 
and Nancy. 

In February following his marriage Air. 
Miller dispi »sed 1 >f his interests in ( )hii 1 and 
moved to Kosciusko county. Indiana, pur- 
chasing the place in Jefferson township 
upon which he has since lived. I le found the 
land covered with heavy timber, thickly in- 
terspersed with underbrush and no improve 
ments of any kind in the way of a habita- 
tion or other buildings. With a resolute 
purpose he began the task of clearing the 
land, an undertaking requiring a vasl 
amount of hard work, and in due time the 

cl of 1 1 i ^ labor began to be visible. He 
developed from the green and prepared for 
tillage the larger portion of the place, be- 
sides erecting a comfortable dwelling and 
other buildings which temporarily answered 
the purpose for which intended. Subse 
quently more substantial structures were 
built, the area of cleared land was increased 
and a system of drainage inaugurated by 
mean-- of which a large part of the place 
originally covered with swamps and swales 
was reclaimed and made tillable. This part 



oi the farm is now far more fertile and pro- 
ductive than the timbered portion ami repre- 
sents a greater value per acre than most land 
by which the farm is surrounded. Indeed it 
may be said that the Miller farm yields to 
no other in the county in productive capac- 
ity, and acre for acre it is perhaps worth as 
much as the most valuable farm lands in 
northern Indiana. 

Much credit is due Mr. Miller for the 
work he has done in developing what was 
formerly considered an undesirable tract of 
wet land and transforming it from its wild 
state into one of the most beautiful rural 
homes within the geographic limits of Jef- 
ferson township. All of the modern me- 
chanical appliances and implements calcu- 
lated to make the pursuit of agriculture an 
easy and agreeable vocation are employed 
by Mr. Miller, while his dwelling is supplied 
with the conveniences and comforts which 
lighten the good housewife's cares and 
make her lot much less burdensome than that 
of any others not so fortunately situated. 
Mr. Miller's place consists of one hundred 
ami sixty acre-, the greater part under cul- 
tivation. Although he has reserved a suf- 
ficiency of timber to answeT all practical 
purpose-, of fuel and lumber, he has prose- 
cuted his farming systematically and by 
well directed industry and judicious man- 
agement has succeeded in acquiring suffi- 
cient means to enable him from now on to 
rest from toil and enjoy some of the results 
of his labors. He is one of the leading 
citizens of his community and enjoys in a 
marked degree the esteem of his neighbors 
and friends throughout the township of Jef- 
ferson. His career has been eminently 
honorable and all who know him speak in 
high terms of his man) sterling qualities 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



627 



and characteristics, not the least of which 
are invincible courage to do the right, un- 
compromising integrity and a large faith in 
God and his fellow man. He is a deeply 
religious man and fails not to ascribe to his 
Maker the many blessings which have at- 
tended him through life. 

Mr. and Mrs. Miller are devout mem- 
bers of the German Baptist church. They 
have been active in the good work of the 
local congregation to which they belong, be- 
sides aiding to promote all charitable and 
benevolent enterprises whereby the deserv- 
ing poor and unfortunae may be benefited. 
Their family consists of twelve children and 
not the least of their blessings is the fact 
that death has not crossed their threshold 
to claim a victim from any of these manly 
sons and womanly daughters ; the names 
and births of the children are as follows: 
Isaac. August 24. 1861 : Catherine, Febru- 
ary 13, 1863; Jacob, December 26, 1864; 
John, November 13, 1866: Jane, July 4, 
1868; Noah, September 5, 1870; Daniel, 
January 8, 1877; Sarah, June 8, 1879; Ida 
November 6. 1S81. and Mary, January 17, 
1884. 



JOHN W. WHITEHEAD. 

The subject of this sketch is one of the 
progressive farmers and enterprising citi- 
zens of Jefferson township, where he has 
made his home for a number of years, being 
closely associated with its development and 
welfare. He is a thorough practical agri- 
culturist and a man of business, and, like 
the great majority of successful men, has 
been the architect of his own fortunes. His 
fidelity to his duties has never been 



neglected in acting his part as a worthy son 
of the great American commonwealth. The 
Whitehead family is of German-Scotch- 
Irish extraction, the subject's ancestors 
being among the early settlers of Pennsyl- 
vania and Virginia. Valentine Whitehead, 
grandfather of John W,. was a Pennsvl- 
vanian by birth, but in an early day went to 
Montgomery county, Ohio, where he lived 
the life of a pioneer. He was the father of 
eleven children, viz: Valentine, David, 
Adam, Samuel, John, Peter, Lewis, Mar- 
garet, Elizabeth, Susan and Mary. 

The seventh of the above children, 
Lewis, was born in Montgomery county, 
Ohio, January 25, 1818. He spent his 
youthful years amid the stirring scenes of 
the pioneer period, became a farmer and 
about the year 1837 was united in marriage 
to Rebecca Wagner, whose birth occurred 
in the county of Montgomery in the month 
of March, 18 17. Mrs. Whitehead was the 
daughter of Jacob Wagner, one of the first 
white men to penetrate the wilderness of 
what is now Preble county and a bold and 
daring pioneer of the time in which he lived. 

Lewis Whitehead remained in his native 
state and settled in Jackson township, Elk- 
hart county, where he purchased land and 
cleared a good farm, the place being about a 
half mile west of the village of New Paris. 
There the wife and mother died on the 5th 
of March, 1893; subsequently Mr. White- 
head sold his farm and made his home with 
his children until his death, which occurred 
January 16, 1896. He was a man of excel- 
lent parts, popular with the people among 
whom he lived and enjoyed an enviable 
reputation as a citizen. He served as trus- 
tee of his township a number of years and 
was a leading member of the German Bap- 



628 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



tist church, the plain simple teachings of 
which lie exemplified in a life devoted to the 
service of God ami to the bettering of the 
condition of his fellow men. He was suc- 
cessful in the accumulation of worldly 
wealth, hut that was by no means the stand- 
ard by which he measured the success of any 
man. In his estimation the individual who 
entertained noble aims ami lived up to them 
to the best of his ability achieved true suc- 
cess, regardless of the value of his earthly 
estate. Twelve children were horn to 
Lewis and Rebecca Whitehead: Cather- 
ine. John \\\. William. Susan. Mary Ann, 
Valentine, Elizabeth, Hester. Jane. Lewis 
M., Jacob and Ellen, the majority of whom 
grew to years of maturity and became use- 
ful in their spheres of life. 

John W. Whitehead, the second child 
and eldest son of this worthy old couple, 
was born while the family lived in Mont- 
gomery county. Ohio, July 28, [839. He 
was hut an infant when his parents moved 
to the new home in Elkhart county. Indiana, 
and his early years were spent amid the 
routine of farm labor, the winter seasons 
being devoted to the duties of the school 
room, lie received a fair education and 
when old enough to start upon an independ- 
ent career, decided to become a farmer, a 
resolution which he has since carried out 
with most gratifying pecuniar} results. He 
remained at home assisting his father to 
clear and devolop the farm until his twenty- 
third year, at which time he chose a lite 
partner in the person of Miss Catherine E. 
Brumbaugh, to whom he was united in the 
hoi) bonds of wedlock on the [6th daj 
January. 1862, the marriage being cele 
brated in Jefferson township. Kosciusko 
count v. Mrs. Whitehead is a native of the 



county of Kosciusko, born January 1. 1843. 
the daughter of Jacob ami Susan 1 Bowser) 
Brumbaugh, who were among the earliest 
pioneers of Jefferson township. 

For a short time after the marriage Mr. 
Whitehead lived with his father-in-law. hut 
in the spring of iNoj rented land in Van 
Buren township, where he continued the 
pursuit of agriculture until taking charge 
of the Brumbaugh farm, two years later. 
He made his home on this place until 1873, 
when he purchased and moved on a farm in 
Jefferson township on which he now resides, 
and which he has developed from a forest 
to its present prosperous condition. With 
Mr. Whitehead, industry and consecutive 
effort have been the touch-stones of success 
and today he ranks with the most progres- 
sive and well-to-do farmers of the commun- 
ity in which he lives. He has spared no 
pains or reasonable expense in making his 
home a model one and the condition of his 
buildings and other improvements, and the 
well-cultivated fields, attest he labor and 
care which he has expended ujxhi them. 
Hi^ residence is an imposing brick structure 
of beautiful design, surrounded by a well- 
kept yard, in which are trees that yield fruit 
and grateful shade, the whole presenting 
an attractive appearance and impressing the 
passerbj as the dwelling- place of a man of 
taste and progressive ideas. As a farmer 
he plans his work with care, prosecutes it 
with great industry ami seldom fails to real- 
ize large returns from the bountiful har- 
vests which he every year garners. He has 
erected good harns and other buildings in 
keeping therewith, pays much attention to 

mdition of his live stock and ma: 
his work and business according to the most 
s\ stematic methods. 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



629- 



Xot as a farmer only has Mr. 'Whitehead 
become widely and popularly known 
throughout the township of Jefferson, but as 
a public-spirited, enterprising man of the 
people, he has long taken a leading part in 
promoting the material development of the 
country and advertising its advantages to 
the world. Possessing business abilities of 
a high order and discriminating judgment, 
the people of his township have several 
times called him to fill positions of respon- 
sibility and trust. In 1887 he was elected 
trustee of Jefferson township, the duties of 
which he discharged worthily for one term, 
and in the fall of 1900 he was appointed to 
the same office to fill a vacancy caused by 
the death of John Mfitchel. At the expira- 
tion of this term of service, he was triumph- 
antly elected his own successor. In his last 
election, partisan politics cut no figure as 
he was the almost unanimous choice of his 
constituents, running on what was known as 
the People's ticket. His last incumbency 
covered a period of five years, which with 
the time he had formerly served made a 
total of eight years in one of the most 
responsible and important local offices 
within the gift of the people. Mr. White- 
head's administration proved eminently 
satisfactory to all concerned, as he proved a 
most capable and faithful official, exceed- 
ingly careful in looking after the people's in- 
terests and conservative in the matter of pub- 
lic expenditures. He never was known to 
act in an arbitrary spirit, but always took 
counsel of the wisest of his fellow citizens. 
Guided by this and his own better judg- 
ment, he devoted his energies to the good of 
the public and the results of his able man- 
agement of affairs are now seen in many 
substantial improvements and the splendid 



credit for which the township of Jefferson 
is noted. 

When a young man, Mr. Whitehead 
united with the German Baptist church and 
has ever since continued a faithful and con- 
sistent member, devout in his daily life and 
active in the affairs of the local congrega- 
tion to which he belongs. For a period of 
twenty years he has held the important office 
of deacon, in which capacity he has been 
instrumental in strengthening the church 
numerically and making its presence a 
potent factor for good in the community. He 
is a recognized leader among his coreligion- 
ists, many of whom look to him for advice, 
his opinions and counsel always carrying 
weight and conviction. 

In the sphere of private citizenship the 
subject of this sketch has long been an influ- 
ential member of the body politic. He reads 
much', is well informed upon the great polit- 
ical and international questions of the day 
and uses his influence in behalf of the man 
or measure which he considers right, regard- 
less of party ties or personal friendships. 
In his community he is universally esteemed 
and no man in Jefferson township enjoys a 
larger measure of public confidence. In 
brief, he is a representative of the best type 
of intelligent, progressive American man- 
hood, a devout Christian, a citizen without 
pretense and an upright, honorable gentle- 
man in every relation of life. 

Mrs. Whitehead had been her husband's 
colaborer and counsellor and her advice and 
judgment have been influential in no small 
degree in bringing about the success which 
is now his. She is also an earnest, pious 
member of the same church with which he is 
identified and her influence has had great 
weight in forming the characters and shap- 



•630 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY 



ing the destinies of the children with which 
she has been blessed. Mr. and .Mrs. White- 
head have had three children, the oldest of 
whom, Mary E.. was called to the better life 
at the tender age of two years; the other two 
are Tazewell D., who married Yida V. 
Groves and lives in Kosciusko county, and 
Chine, wife of < (mar F. Groves, who is also 
a resident of Kosciusko county. 



GE< >U(,H \Y. HOLLAR. 

The subject of this sketch is regarded as 
one of the public-spirited citizens of Jeffer- 
township and as a farmer and stock 
dealer ranks with the leading men -of the 
community in which he lives. He is a 
younger brother of Joseph and James E. 
Hollar, whose biographies appear elsewhere 
ami has hcen an honored resident of Kos- 
ciusko county since the year 1879. 

George W. Hollar dates his birth from 
the 1 ith of September, [858, and he first 
saw the light of day on the family homestead 
in the historic county of Shenandoah. Vir- 
ginia. When a lad he attended school 
taught in a building on his father's farm and 
1 training thus received was afterwards 
supplemented by a course in the graded 
school- of Edinburg, Virginia, where in ad- 
dition to completing the common branches 
he obtained a knowledge of some of the 
more advanced ■studies. When old enough 
he was put to work on the farm and then be 
came inured to life's practical duties, learn- 
ing the lessons of industry and economy and 
developing a strength of character which has 
served well as a foundation for his 
<juent career as a successful artisan and ag- 



riculturist. Mr. Hollar assisted his parents 
until his twenty-second year, at which time 
he severed the ties that hound him to home 
and started into the world to make his own 
way and. if possible, acquire a fortune. 
Meanwhile, while a lad in his 'teens, he be- 
gan working at the shoemaking trade under 
the direction of an older brother, Harvey, a 
practical workman, and after acquiring ,1 
knowledge of the trade continued the same 
of winter seasons until 1879. In that year 
Mr. Hollar concluded to try his fortunes in 
northern Indiana, whither his two brothels 
had preceded him; accordingly he arrange 1 
his affairs and. bidding adieu to his old Vir- 
ginia home, came to Kosciusko county. 
Shortly after his arrival he found employ- 
ment as a farm laborer at remunerative 
wages and after working thus for some 
months engaged with a man to make Staves 
and other kinds of work in woodcraft. He 
continued variously employed until the 
spring of 1881, when lie began carpentering 
under his brother. James E., one of the most 
skillful builders in the county, and after In- 
coming a proficient workman was hired at 
mechanic's wages, first by his brother and 
afterwards by other parties. Mr. Hollar de- 
voted about ten consecutive years to his 
trade, during which period he built a num- 
ber of dwellings, barns and other edifices in 
various parts of Kosciusko county, nearly all 
of which are standing as monuments to his 
efficiency and skill as a master of one of the 
most important of mechanical pursuits. 

Miss Lydia I. Bright, daughter of John 
and Sarah 1 Pittman) Bright, was born in 
Elkhart county. Indiana. November 6, [865. 
She was reared and educated in the counties 
of Elkhart and Kosciusko and on the J_'d 
day of lanuarv. 1SS5. became the wife »f 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



631, 



the subject of this sketch, the marriage re- 
sulting in the birth of five children, whose 
names are as f< >11< >ws : Jesse J., William H., 
VaJlie Y., Lillie M. and George W., all liv- 
ing but the first born. 

Shortly after his marriage Mr. Hollar 
purchased forty acres in section 16, Jeffer- 
son township, on which he erected a house 
and then set to work to clear and otherwise 
develop his farm. He prosecuted his labors 
industriously and successfully and in a few- 
years had the greater portion of his land in 
cultivation. Subsequently he bought forty 
acres adjoining the original purchase, the 
two tracts constituting the present area of 
his farm. In 1898 he moved his dwelling to 
the second forty and about the same time, 
or perhaps a little later, erected a fine barn, 
one of the best buildings of the kind in the 
neighborhood. His other outbuildings are 
comparatively new and in first-class repair 
and on every part of the farm a spirit of 
prosperity obtains. Mr. Hollar's experience 
as a mechanic has been the means of de- 
veloping good taste and minute attention to 
details, both of which are plainly apparent 
in all the buildings and other improvements 
on his place as well as in the inviting appear- 
ance of his dwelling and its attractive sur- 
roundings. The home is substantial and 
comfortable in all of its appointments and 
impresses the passerby as the dwelling place 
of an enterprising and thrifty family. 

Air. Hollar has seventy oi his eighty 
acres in cultivation, while the entire farm is 
enclosed with strung fences of the latest and 
most approved design. He prosecutes his 
labors systematically, manages his affairs 
with judgment and caution and, as stated in 
the initial paragraph, occupies a conspicuous 
place among the most enterprising and suc- 



cessful Jefferson township farmers. In ad- 
dition to tilling the soil, he deals quite exten- 
sively in live stock, in which his success has. 
been of the most satisfactory character. Mr. 
Hollar began buying stock in 1900 for the 
Iffert brothers, of Elkhart county, and has. 
continued in their employ ever since, his 
operations taking him over all parts of Kos- 
ciusko county and into several other coun- 
ties of northern Indiana. He is a fine judge- 
of all kinds of live stock, exercises discreet 
judgment in his business transactions and 
probably has brought and shipped more cat- 
tle and hogs since he engaged with the above- 
firm than any other man in this part of the 
state. In financial matters he is easily the 
peer of any of his fellow citizens, his experi- 
ence in buying and selling giving his opin- 
ions weight and causing his ideas to receive 
due consideration. He has sound business. 
qualifications and decision of character,, 
which, with other meritorious characteris- 
tics, have won for him an enviable standing 
among the leading business men of his town- 
ship and county. 

Mr. Hollar sprang from sturdy moral 
ancestors and he has endeavored to shape- 
bis life according to the correct principles 
that were instilled into his mind when a. 
youth under his father's care. He and his. 
brothers have done much for the material 
welfare of the community in which they live 
and the example of each is worthy of imita- 
tion. 



P. G. FERMIER, M. D. 

Although a comparatively recent arrival 
in Leesburg, having located here in 1894, 
Dr. Fermier has already taken a prominent: 



632 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



place among the leading and influential citi- 
zens of the county of Kosciusko and has won 
much mere than local distinction in the line 
of his profession, lie is numbered among 
the native sons of the commonwealth of In- 
diana, born in Dearborn county on the -'nil 
day of September, [866. His father. Dr. 
P. ( 1. Fermier, was born in Germany and his 
mother, whose maiden name was Elizabeth 
F.hler. \\a^ a native of the United State-. 
but of German descent. Originally the Fer- 
mier- were French Huguenots. To escape 
the cruel persecution to which that faithful 
and devoted people were subjected, the sub- 
ject's great-grandfather many year- ago 
tied from France with a number of his co-re- 
ligionists and took refuge in Germany, 
where he reared a family and spent the re- 
mainder i if his da) s. 

Dr. P. d. Fermier. the subject's father, 
after receiving a classical education, took up 
the study of medicine in his native country 
and later was graduated from the medical 
department of Munich and Heidelberg Uni- 
versities. These are considered the finest 
medical schools in Germany, if not in the 
world, and while prosecuting his studies 
therein Dr. Fermier was under the direction 
of some of the most distinguished professors 
of the age. In the year 1041; he came to the 
United State- and located in Mansfield, 
Ohio, where he had an office next door to 
the law office of the late Hon. John Sher- 
man, one of the leading statesmen of Amer- 
ica. After practicing his profession in the 
above city for some time, the Doctor 
changed his location to Dearborn county. 
Indiana, where he carried on a large and lu- 
crative practice for a period of forty-five 
years. He became widely and favorably 
known among the most learned and success- 



ful men of the state of Indiana. He mar- 
ried in the County of Dearborn, reared a fam- 
ily of seven children and departed this life 
in 1897, his wife dying the same year. The 
children are briefly mentioned a- follow-: 
Effie, the first born of his children, married 
Aaron Keller and lives in Dearborn coun- 
ty; Cordelia, the next in order of birth, also 
lives in Dearborn and is unmarried; P. G., 
the subject of thi- review, i- the third of the 
family; George, deceased, was an ensign in 
the Pacific squadron during the late Span- 
ish-American war ami was with Admiral 
Dewey at Manila: Emile J., a -ingle man. is 
master mechanic at La Fayette, he has a line 
technical education, having attended differ- 
ent college- and institutes and ha- rapidly 
risen to distinction in his chosen calling; 
Alma is a teacher in the public schools of 
Dearborn county, making a specialty of 
kindergarden work; Richard, the youngest, 
i- a married man at the present time, en- 
gaged in the undertaking business 111 the city 
1 »f Chicago. 

When a youth the subject of this sketch 
enjoyed the advantages of the public schools 
of his native county, after which he took a 
select course in the Northern Indiana Nor- 
mal College at Valparaiso He attended 
that well-known and popular institution 
from [883 to [885 inclusive, and after com- 
pleting the prescribed course taught for six 
years in the public schools, meanwhile pro-. 
CUting his medical -tudies at intervals under 
the efficient instruction of hi- father. In 
1892 lie entered the Indiana Medical Col- 
lege. Indianapolis, where he continued four 
years in patient study and laborious re- 
search, graduating with a creditable record 
in i8<>4. 

In looking around for a favorable loca- 



COMPEXDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



633 



tn ni. Dr. Fermier decided to begin his pro- 
fessional labors at Leesburg; accordingly 
just one month after his graduation he 
opened an office here, swinging his shingle 
in the breeze and announced himself a can- 
didate for a portion of the public patronage. 
His reputation as an exceedingly well- 
learned and capable physician soon won for 
him a lucrative practice and from the date 
of his arrival to the present time he has 
steadilv come to the front and now occupies 
a prominent place among his professional 
brethren of Kosciusko county. His business 
has increased very largely, his practice tak- 
ing a wide range, and among his patients 
are many of the leading people of the town 
and surrounding country all of whom are 
lavish in their praise of his efficiency and 
skill as a physician and surgeon. 

Dr. Fermier's ability to trace the devious 
paths of disease throughout the human sys- 
tem and to remove its effects is widely rec- 
ognized and a mind well disciplined by se- 
vere professional training and strengthened 
by the salutary counsels of a father who was 
second to none of his compeers in medical 
science, together with a natural aptitude for 
close investigation and critical research, 
have peculiarly fitted him for the noble call- 
ing in which he is engaged, and thus far his 
career has been all and more than his most 
sanguine friends predicted. He is a careful 
reader of the best professional literature and 
keeps himself in touch with the age in the 
latest discoveries pertaining to the healing 
art. These qualities of mind and heart that 
do not pertain to the mere knowledge of 
medical science, but greatly enhance the 
true worth of the family physician, are not 
wanting in him. He possesses the tact and 
happy faculty of inspiring confidence on the 



part of his patients and their friends and 
in the sick room his genial presence and 
conscious ability to cope successfully with 
disease under treatment are factors that ha\ e 
contributed much to the env'able standing 
which he has attained. He is a member of 
the county, state and American medical as- 
sociations, holds the office of secretary to the 
board of health of Leesburg, and at the pres- 
ent time is local medical examiner for the 
Xew York Life, .Mutual Life and Equitable 
Life Insurance companies. He also holds 
similar positions with the Modern Woodmen 
of America, the Maccabees and Knights of 
Pythias fraternities at Leesburg and his du- 
ties have been discharged in such a manner 
as to win the praise, not only of the local 
membership, but of the authorities of the 
several societies as well. 

Dr. Fermier is a married man. his wife 
being formerly Miss Lula May Rowley, of 
Indianapolis. She is an accomplished stenog- 
rapher and typewriter and has held several 
very lucrative positions in the capital city 
and elsewhere. He first met her while 
prosecuting his professional studies in In- 
dianapolis and the marriage which followed 
the acquaintance was solemnized on the 20th 
day of June. 1895. 

Additional to the fraternal orders already 
mentioned, the Doctor is a member of the 

Masonic brotherh 1. belonging to Lees- 

buro- Loclgre No. 181, in which he is now 
serving as senior warden. Politically he is 
a Republican; with no ambition to excel in 
anything but his profession, he devotes com- 
paratively little time to matters political, 
preferring to use the best of his energies and 
powers to the noble work of ministering to 
suffering humanity. The Doctor is a be- 
liever in revealed religion and a deep student 



634 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



of the holy scriptures. He subscribes t 

formulated creed or articles of faith outside 
the word of God, taking the latter alone as 
his only rule of faith and practice. He holds 
membership with the First Christian church 
of Warsaw, a- does also his wife, both be- 
ing recognized as among the most valued 
members of that congregation. 



JOHX REED. 



John Reed, one of the must enter- 
prising and prosperous farmers of Scott 
township, Kosciusko county. Indiana, and 
an ex-soldier, is a native of Ashland county. 
Ohio, and was horn October 28, 184.2. 
Ills parents, Charles M. and Eliza- 
beth (Harper) Reed, natives of Pennsyl- 
vania, were both young when their parents 
migrated from the Keystone state to the 
Buckeye state. They were married in Ash- 
land county. Ohio, and thence, in [844, 
brought their little family to Indiana and 
located in DeKalb county. The total num- 
ber of children that crowned their union, all. 
with one exception, born in Indiana, was ten. 
namely: William H., Jacob, Eliza J.. 
Charles M., Rebecca •'... Mary. John (sub- 
ject 1. Joseph S., Daniel and Nancy E. 

John Reed, whose name opens this re- 
view, was reared on the home farm and 
farming has been his life vocatii in. His edu- 
cation was acquired in the old school-house 

situated in the neighborh 1 in which his 

parents settled after coming to Indiana, and 
lie remained until his twenty-second year at 
the home of his parents, who had settled in 
Elkhart county in the spring of 1861. 
same year the Civil war hurst forth, and for 



nearly three years Mr. Reed pined with 
longing heart to join the patriotic host of 
volunteers who rose in their might to crush 
the nefarious rebellion. At last the oppor- 
tunity came, and November 5, [864, he en- 
listed in Company I). Thirteenth Indiana 
Volunteer Infantry, with which he served 
until September 5, 1805. when he was honor- 
al\ discharged at Goldsboro, North Ca 
lina, and returned to his home in Elkhart 
county. 

August 8, 18(17. ^' r - Reed was united in 
marriage, in Elkhart county, with .Miss Har- 
riet R. Huldread, who was born in Ohio 
November 5, 1849, ;m '' ' s a daughter of 
Frederick and Rosanna 1 Bowers) Huldread. 
who came from t ttiio in 1850 and settled in 
Elkhart county. Indiana. In the autumn of 
the year of his marriage .Mr. Reed settled on 
a farm of forty acres in Jefferson township, 
Kosciusko county, which land he had pur- 
chased a _\ear previousl) for the small sum 
of four hundred and tift\ dollars. This land 
he cleared up. improved and resided :m until 
he had an opportunity of disposing of it for 
one thousand, six hundred dollars, when he 
sold it and bought a farm of eighty-eight 
and one-half acres in Scott township for 
three thousand one hundred dollars, upon 
which he removed and resided until 1N81. 
when he settled on his present farm of one 
hundred and twenty acres, for which he paid 
three thousand two hundred dollars. This 
is now one of die best-tilled, best-stocked 
and best-improved farms in Kosciusko coun- 
ty, and Mr. Reed is recognized as one of the 
enterprising agriculturists of his township. 

To the marriage of Mr. Reed with Miss 
1 [uldread have been b< irn six children, in the 
following order: Joseph \C, November 6. 
1868; Ellzina I'... September 21, 1872; Rosa 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



635 



I!.. August 6, 1878; Amy M., November 19, 
1880; Albert C, January 30. 1884, and 
Laurence M., April 22, 1891. 

Fraternally, Mr. Reed is a member of 
Xappanee Lodge No. 566, F. & A. M., and 
Burlen Post No. 402, < i. A. R.. of Nap- 
panee. He has all through life maintained 
a character of the strictest integrity and no 
family in Scott township is more highly re- 
spected than his. Mr. Reed has in his pos- 
session an old parchment deed which was 
executed during the administration of Presi- 
dent Martin Van Buren and bears the dace 
of August 10, 1837. 



REUBEN BYRER. 



The agriculturists of Scott township, 
Kosciusko county, Indiana, are generally 
men of thrift, but no farmer in this favored 
locality has merited greater praise in this re- 
gard than Reuben Byrer, who has made a 
perfect success of all his undertakings as a 
cultivator of the soil. He is a native of 
Stark county, Ohio, and a son of Albert and 
Rosanna (Burket) Byrer, who were born in 
Pennsylvania and were of German descent. 

Albert Byrer had his nativity on the 26th 
day of February, 1813, and his wife w : as 
born January 3, 1826. From Pennsylvania 
they migrated to Ohio in an early day and 
first located in Stark county, whence they 
removed to Summit county, and in 1865 
came to Kosciusko county, Indiana. Here 
Mrs. Rosanna Byrer passed away March 22, 
1875, and Albert Byrer, February 5, 1889. 
Their eleven children were born in the fol- 
lowing order: Margaret A., March 28, 
1844; Edward J., July 10, 1845; Louisa 



(deceased), May 21, 1847; Sarah J. (de- 
ceased), May 14, 1850; Lydia. June 9, 
[852; Almira, October 29. 1854; Reuben 
(of this biography), September 21, 1856; 
Jeremiah, October 7, 1859; Linens O., July 
5, 1862; Jonathan A., March 2^, 1865, and 
Peter W, October 16, 1868. 

Reuben Byrer came to Kosciusko county 
with his parents in 1805 and was here reared 
to manhood. I lis education was acquired in 
the common schools ami in the normal 
schools of Warsaw and Pierceton, and in 
1877 he began teaching, a vocation he fol- 
lowed seventeen consecutive years in Kos- 
ciusko county, seventeen terms in one dis- 
trict, a fact indicative in itself of his supe- 
rior qualifications as an instructor and of the 
favor in which he stood with his patrons. 

The marriage of Reuben Byrer was cele- 
brated in Marshall county, Indiana, Septem- 
ber 9, 1883, with Miss Emma E. Ringgen- 
berg, who was born in Kosciusko county, 
October 7, 1863, and is a daughter of John 
and Mary A. (Berger) Ringgenberg, early- 
settlers of Kosciusko county, but now prom- 
inent residents of Bremen, Marshall county, 
and the parents of fourteen children name- 
ly : Peter, Sarah, Lydia, all deceased; Peter 
(second) ; Sarah, Caroline, Lucetta, Dan- 
iel, Ella, also deceased ; Emme E. ; John H. ; 
Edward S., deceased; Susannah E. and 
Clara V. In 1890 Mr. Byrer purchased his 
present farm of eighty-six acres and in 1895 
erected his buildings and moved upon the 
place. He has now sixty-five acres in a fine 
state of cultivation and has made his farm 
one of the most profitable in the township. 

To Mr. and Airs. Byrer have been born 
five children, namely: Dorcy G., April 26, 
1885; Dora E., September 13, 1886; Eben 
R., July 24, 1888, died December 2^, 1892; 



39 



6 3 6 



COMPENDIUM OP BIOGRAPHY. 



Floyd \V.. April 10, 1890; Harvey J., De- 
cember 23, 1894. Mr. and .Mrs. Byrer are 
members of the Evangelical church, have 
lived fully up to its doctrines, and no family 
in the township enjoy or more deservedly 
have gained the high esteem in winch Mr. 
Byrer' s family is held by the people of Scott 
township. In politics the subject affiliates 
with the Republican party. 



SAMUEL C. HEPLER. 

Scott township. Kosciusko county, In- 
diana, has within its precincts no more de- 
serving resident than Samuel C. Hepler, who 
is what is usually designated a "self-made" 
man, or, in other words, a man who, through 
his own efforts and good management, has 
made his own fortune. Scott township is 
Mr. Hepler's place of nativity, his birth 
having here taken place February 26, 1841. 
His parents, David C. and Magdalena 
I Vaulky ) Hepler, were born in Pennsyl- 
vana and were of German descent. David 
t , was horn in [8ll and when a mere boy 
was brought from the Keystone state by his 
parent-, who settled in Stark county. ( Alio, 
where he grew to manhood, lie married 
Magdalena Yaulky, who was born in 1807 
and was ,1 young girl when taken to ( Hlio by 
her parents. 

On marrying, Mr. Hepler first located 
on a farm in Stark county, on which he lived 
until about [838, when he came to Koscius- 
ko county, Indiana, and entered land which 
he improved and resided upon until called 
from earth. At the time of his coming here 
the country was a wilderness and he had to 
hew a way through the forest for many miles 



to reach his prospective farm, but he suc- 
ceeded after much hard labor in making 
himself and family a first-class home of two 

hundred acres. To David C. and Magda- 
lena Hepler were horn eight children, name- 
ly: Elizabeth, Daniel (deceased), John. 

David (deceased I. Samuel C, Jacob, and 
Isaac and Hiram (deceased). The parents 

of thi- family are also now deceased, the 
mother having died in 1S70 and the father 
in 1880. 

Samuel C Hepler has passed his entire 
life in farming, and his only education was 
acquired in the old-fashioned log school- 
house of his childhood. He assisted his par- 
ents on the home place during the summer 
season, all through his schools days, and 
afterwards aided them throughout the year 
until about twenty-seven years old. 

May 1 J, 1870, Mr. Hepler united in mar- 
riage, in Kosciusko county, to Miss Aman- 
da C Britton. who was born in Holmes 
county. Ohio, April jj. tS4_». the only 
child of Lewis and Druscilla (Stiffler) Brit- 
ton. The father of Mrs. Hepler died at a 
comparatively early age, and Mrs. Britton 
was next married to Jacob Wyman, and by 
him became the mother of five children, viz: 
Henry, George, Rachel, Michael .and Am- 
brose. 

At his marriage Mr. Hepler began house- 
keeping on rented land, which he occupied 
two years, and then, in the spring of [873, 
purchased and settled upon the farm he now 
occupies. At that time this farm was im- 
proved with only a few log structures, such 
as were necessary to make it habitable, but 
Mr. Hepler has converted it into one of the 
besl farms of its dimensions in Scott town- 
ship. It comprises one hundred acres, of 
which Mr. Hepler has placed under cultiva- 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



637 



tii >n ninety-two. It is all fenced, and the old 
log shanties have been replaced with a fine 
modern, two-Story frame dwelling", a sub- 
stantial barn and all necessary outbuildings. 
To the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Hep- 
ler eight children have come to brighten the 
home, namely: Urene, born February 27, 
1871 ; George, January 7. 1873; Salome. 
October 24. 1874; Charles. April 1, 1876; 
Magdalena, May 22, [878; Marion, Janu- 
ary 23, 1880; Francis, October 10, 1881, and 
Henry. April 23, 1SK5. Mr. and Mrs. Hep- 
ler are members of the Lutheran church, to 
tbe support of which they liberally contrib- 
ute financially and the teachings of which 
they implicitly follow. By their consistent 
and upright walk through life they have won 
the unfeigned respect of their neighbors and 
tbe untiring labor of Mr. Hepler, with its 
accompanying reward, has been a matter of 
general congratulation among his many 
friends. Mr. Hepler is a Democrat in poli- 
tics. He possesses a parchment sheepskin 
deet], executed July 1, [845, and bearing the 
signature of President James K. Polk. 



S. HEPLER. 



The subject of this sketch is a native of 
Ohio, born in Stark count)', November 3, 
1831. His parents were Samuel S. and 
Mary M. ( Frick ) Hepler, both born in 
Pennsylvania, tbe father April 17. [806, and 
and the mother on the 14th day of March, 
1805. They were early settlers of Stark 
county and lived there until 1840, at which 
time tbev came to Kosciusko county. Indi- 
ana, settling in Scott township, where they 
spent the remainder of their days, the mother 



dying June 23, 1873. and the father January 
22, 1889. Samuel and Mary Hepler bad ten 
children, namely: Sarah, Joseph, Hannah, 
Catherine. George, Solomon, Mary, Eliza- 
beth, Lucinda and Samuel, of whom Joseph, 
Solomon and Samuel are living. 

Solomon Hepler was a lad nine years old 
when his parents came to Kosciusko county 
and from that time to the present he has 
spent his life within its limits. He was 
reared to agricultural pursuits and has al- 
wavs followed farming for a livelihood, 
meeting with success in his chosen vocation. 
When twenty-one years of age he began life 
for himself, entering forty acres of land in 
Jefferson township. Subsequently Mr. Hep- 
ler purchased an additional forty acres of his 
father, and being now in a fair condition to 
make more substantial headway in the world 
he took to himself a wife in the person of 
Miss Margaret Bortz, the ceremony being 
solemnized on the 4th day of March, 1852. 
Mrs. Hepler was born in Stark count) - . 
Ohio, November 2^. [834. 

After bis marriage Mr. Hepler moved to 
his farm in Jefferson township and continued 
to reside on the same until 1900, when he 
retired from active life and changed his resi- 
dence to the town of Milford, where he now 
lives. He was a progressive farmer, made 
manv valuable improvements on his place 
and earned tbe reputation of an honest, in- 
dustrious, upright citizen whose integrity 
was unassailable and whose word was as 
good as his bond. He owns one hundred 
and sixty-one acres of as fine land as the 
county of Kosciusko contains and bis home 
in Milford is one of the beautiful and attrac- 
tive private dwellings in tbe town. By dili- 
gent attention to his business affairs he has 
placed himself in independent circumstances 



638 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



and is now enjoying si >me i if the fruits i >\ his 
in a life from which all care and anx- 
iety have been eliminated. He is highly 
esteemed by a large circle of friends and by 
his upright course has made himself worthy 
the respect and confidence of his fellow citi- 
zens. 

Mr. and Mrs. Ilcpler are the parents of 
seven children, whose names are as follows: 
Catherine (deceased), Mary (deceased). 
Hannah (deceased), Andrew. John. Eliza- 
heth and Rosie. The father and mother arc 
haembers of the Progressive branch of the 
German Baptist church and the children 
have been reared in that faith. 



J. V QU M KI.XIU'SI 1. 

This substantial farmer and worthy citi- 
zen has had a varied and interesting career 
as a business man. successful tiller ol the 
soil and a traveler, having been the latter at 
an age when im >st boys are .still at In >me un- 
der the watchful care of their parents. The 
Quackenbush family is of German origin, 
the subject's ancestors coming to America a 
great many years ago and settling in the 
state nf New York. Hiram Quackenbush, 
father of J. V. was born in the Empire state 
and there grew t" maturity, marrying, when 
a young man. Cornelia Mowers. By occu- 
pation he was a tanner and appears to have 
been successful in his business affairs, accu- 
mulating a sufficiency of this world's goods 
tn purchase a good place in his native state, 
which he cultivated for a number of years. 
Thinking to better his condition further 
west, he finally sold his possessions in New 
York and made a trip by way of canal and 



the lakes to Chicago, thence to Lake county. 
Indiana, where he purchased a half section 
id' land, the place being near the city of 
Crown Point. This move was made in [84.6 
and after living on this land for about three 
years he moved to St. Joseph county. Mich- 
igan, where he had previously bought one 
hundred and twenty acres on the St. Joseph 
river in what was then known as the Burr 
Oak opening. 

J. A. Quackenbush was horn on the old 
home place in Chenango county, New York, 
November t6, 1838, and was a lad of eight 
years when the family moved to Indiana, 
lie remained with his parents in St. Joseph 
county. Michigan, until after his mother's 
death, when he was aboul seventeen years 
of age, and then left home to face the world 
anil make his own fortune and carve out his 
own destiny. Impressed with a desire to 
see the far west, a land which at that time 
held out many glittering promises to the 
young and ambitious, as also the adventur- 
ous, he made his wav in [86] to Denver, 
Colorado, where he remained variously em 
1 until the spring of the year following. 
Determined to see more of the great western 
domain, he proceeded the latter year overland 
to California, where for the next three years 
he engaged in farming, teaming and general 
freighting in which he was quite successful. 
saving his earnings with scrupulous care. 
In December, [864, Mr. Quackenbush de- 
cided to return cast, and taking a steamer 
from San Francisco, by way of Panama 
to New York city, and from thence to De- 
Kalh county. Indiana, where he engaged in 
mercantile business, at Waterloo City, about 
two years, lie subsequently effected a co- 
partnership with his brother, J. A.Wilson, in 
the marble business at the town of Ligonier, 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



639 



Noble county. After following that line of 
trade for some time, he disposed of his in- 
terest in the business and obtained a govern- 
ment license to engage in the broker's busi- 
ness, buying and selling notes and other 
papers, and also at the same time buying 
and shipping grain and produce. This he 
followed until investing his means in a 
piece of land in the county of Elkhart. Mov- 
ing to his farm, Mr. Ouackenbush turned his 
attention to agricultural pursuits and after 
living in Elkhart county three years sold his 
land there and invested the proceeds in the 
farm on which he now resides in Tippecanoe 
township, county of Kosciusko. 

Unlike the majority of men who move 
from place to place and lose with almost 
every change of residence, Mr. Quacken- 
bush was successful in his various enter- 
prises and made few changes that were not 
in the end for the better. Since coming to 
this county he has improved a fine farm, 
adding greatly t<> the fertility and value of 
his land, and he is now considered one of 
the substantial and progressive husbandmen 
of the community in which he lives. He 
kni iws how to take advantage of opportuni- 
ties, as his contact with the world in differ- 
ent capacities proved of great educational 
value in developing and strengthening a 
naturally strong mind, making him not only 
a close and intelligent observer, but matur- 
ing his judgment to a very marked degree. 
Mr. Ouackenbush inherits much of the 
tenacity and perseverance characteristic of 
his descent and his industry and manage- 
ment have been of a very persistent type. 
He has come in contact with all classes and 
conditions of men and obtained thereby a 
large fund of practical knowledge which en- 
ables him to take views of the world and 



give proper advice to young men whose his- 
tory is still in the future. He enjovs the 
reputation of an honorable man and worthy 
citizen, capable in his business affairs, con- 
scientious and upright in all his dealings 
with his fellows, while his high place in the 
public esteem has been well earned by correct 
conduct and right living. 

Mr. Quackenbush's wife was formerly 
Miss Helen Mayfield. daughter of Samuel 
Mayfield, of Xoble county. She bore her 
husband three children, and departed this 
life on the nth day of May. 1901. The old- 
est son. Farmer J., married Myrtle Philpott, 
and lives in Tippecanoe township. He is a 
well educated man and for some years past 
has been one of the county's most successful 
and popular teachers. He has also studied 
law ami will ultimately devote his life to that 
profession. Madge E., born February 5, 
1883. is also a teacher in the public schools 
and has earned a wide reputation for skill 
and efficiency in her work. Laura R., the 
youngest, was horn September 28, 1885, 
and, like the other two, has enjoyed the ad- 
vantages of superior educational training. 
Mrs. Ouackenbush was a devoted member of 
the Christian church and early impressed 
upon the minds of her children the prin- 
ciples of religion by which her own life was 
directed and controlled. Not identified with 
any church organization himself, Mr. 
Quackenbush is a believer in revealed re- 
ligion, and has been a liberal contributor to 
the church with which his wife was identi- 
fied. He was made a Mason in [865 and has 
been an enthusiastic worker in the fraternity 
since that time, lie formerly held member- 
ship with Chapter No. 44. R. A. M., in 
Xoble county, in which, as in the blue lodge, 
he has held various official positions from 



640 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



time tn time. Politically he is a stanch sup- 
porter of the Republican party, taking a 
lively interest in political questions and in 
campaigns rendering effective service both 

as a planner and worker in the ranks. 

Personally Mr. Quackenbush is quiel and 
unassuming, hut withal genial and compan- 
ionable, and has many warm friends 
throughout the county of Kosciusko, lie is 
to all interests and purposes a self-made 
man. as he started in life with no capital hut 
energy and industry and the education ob- 
tained principally h\ his own efforts, and his 
career in the main has been successful. 



WILLIAM HECKM \.\. Deceased. 

The subject of this memoir was for a 
number of years an enterprising farmer and 
popular citizen of Scott township. He was 
horn in Marshall county. Indiana. May 28, 
[850, the -on of Jacob and Elizabeth 
(Shearer) I leckman. natives of Pennsyl- 
vania and Ohio, respectively. These parents 
were among the early settlers of Mar-hall 
count). mo\ ing to that part of the state when 
the country was new and spending the re- 
mainder of their days where they originally 
located. They had a family of eleven chil- 
dren, namely: John, Sarah, Mary, Samuel, 
Emanuel, Rachel, Philip, William. Jacob, 
.Margaret and \ < 1 ; 1 1 1 1 . 

William I leckman was reared on the 
homestead in Marshall county, and choosing 
farming for a vocation, followed the -nine 
w ith success and financial pr< 'lit t< 1 the end of 
hi- day.-. Mary Burgner, who became his 
wife on the 4th of July, [872, was horn in 
the county of Marshall February [3, 1854. 
She i- the daughter of John and Christena 



(Shafer) Burgner. the former a native of 
Switzerland and the latter of Germany. 
John and Christena Burgner came to the 
United States with their respective parents 
when young and grew to maturity in Ohio, 
where thev were married a number of years 
ago. Subsequently they moved to Indiana, 
in which state the remaining years of their 
earthly pilgrimage were spent. They reared 
a large family, consisting of fourteen chil- 
dren, namely: Henry. Christena. Catherine. 
Michael. William. Elizabeth, Philip. Will- 
iam. Mary, John. Peter, Catherine, Charles 
and Ella. 

For some time after his marriage Will- 
iam Heckman followed agricultural pursuits 
in his native county, leasing land for the 
purpose, and about five years later changed 
his residence to the county of Kosciusko, 
where for a period of about one year he also 
fanned as a renter, lie then purchased the 
farm in Scott township where his widow 
now resides and continued to cultivate the 
same with a large measure of success until 
his death, which occurred on the 28th day of 
Januarj . 1891. 

Mr. 1 leckman was a prosperous man and 
a most exemplary citizen. His nature was 
truthful, and pn iving wi irthy > if trust he w as 
always trusted with unquestioning reliance. 
Among his marked characteristics were a 
clear, intelligent and thoroughly practical 
judgment, a strong and active will, untiring 
industry, frugality, and energetic public 
spirit and a manner genial and kind, which 
wcin for him the unbounded confidence of all 
with whom he came in contact. Within the 
sacred precincts of home, where he had gar- 
nered up the treasures of the heart, his vir- 
tues shone with peculiar luster and the life 
with which he illuminated the domestic cir- 



COMPENDIUM OF BIOGRAPHY. 



641 



cle was reflected in all of his relations with 
his fellow men. He accumulated a liberal 
share of this world's goods, including a fine 
farm of one hundred and twenty acres, and 
left his wife and children in comfortable cir- 
cumstances. Fur a number of years he had 
been an earnest and zealous member of the 
Evangelical Association and cheered by its 
teachings and sustained by an unfaltering 
trust in Him who doeth all things well, he 
fearlessly entered the valley of shadows, as- 



sured of a welcome on the other side from 
the Savior whom he had so faithfully served 
here. 

To Air. and Mrs. Heckman were born 
the following children: Rosa E., wife of 
George Carl, of Nappanee; Anna E., mar- 
ried Noah Rhinehart and also lives in the 
town of Nappanee; Lenora, the wife of 
Edward Hepler, lives on the home farm; 
Clarence, Ira A. and Loutrella, the last 
three still under the parental roof. 




